The Heavy Sleeper
by isthistakenyet
Summary: Set in between the Titan war and The Son of Neptune, While waiting for the right time to send Percy to camp Jupiter; Hera has a quest sure to keep him busy. Bad summery but give it a try if you want.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series**

Heavy Sleeper

Percy Pov chapter one

Blinding sunlight woke him up as he rubbed his eyes blinking to get adjusted to his surroundings. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, and the temperature seemed perfect. He was on a blue towel with miles of empty white-brown sand around him. The Atlantic Ocean seemed uncharacteristically dormant. He heard a soft laugh from his left and turned his head towards the sound. He caught his breath at the sight of a drop-dead gorgeous girl lying next to him. She had a seemingly perfect tan and honey blonde hair that fell in curls down her back. The most distinct feature was the stormy gray eyes that set her a part from every other California blonde, and he couldn't help but get lost in them.

"Ya know seaweed brain, if you didn't want to hear about my ideas for Olympus you could've just told me!" She sighed exasperatedly while failing to keep an annoyed tone to her voice.

He must've been too busy gawking at her to listen correctly because whatever she was talking about made no sense. Olympus?… Seaweedbrain?… what's she talking about?

"Uh… what?" he mumbled stupidly to the girl to his left.

"Never mind Percy go back to bed," She smiled as she leaned in and kissed him.

He felt a spark of electricity run through his body, but pulled away in shock. Her carefree expression changed to one of anguish and pain, and the perfect weather turned stormy and rainy as twenty-foot waves crashed against the beach and thunder and lightning rolled across the sky "The one with only one shoe… grand canyon… Percy what'd you do this time," she said worriedly to herself.

She began to tear up, and even though he didn't recognize this girl his heart ached in his chest. Her image began to flicker between that of the girl and another woman reminding me of the Earth with closed eyes and a creepy smile on her face. The sky turned black as a 50-foot wave loomed over his head. Just as it was about to hit him he bolted upright in bed and hit his head on the wooden bunk above him.

Percy rubbed his eyes and flopped back on the bed not yet ready to start the day. He tried to make sense of the dream he just had but it was like putting together one of those one thousand piece jigsaw puzzles without knowing what the final picture was supposed to look like. Percy knew he should know the girl from his dream but the more he thought about it the more his head hurt. He decided it must've been from hitting his head on the bunk, but when he went to the bathroom to brush his teeth he couldn't find a single mark. "Weird…" he said to himself as he looked for a sign of damage on his head. He put on his mining gear like he had done a thousand times. Technically he wasn't old enough to work in the mines but he looked big enough. He had to provide for the other six children at his orphanage and frankly the other workers had bigger problems to worry about than an underage kid heading into the mine shafts. Percy was about to head down to the mines when a screeching voice stopped him, "Where do you think your going Perseus!"

The voice made him flinch, "to the mines?" he answered the caretaker Denise cautiously. She was in her early fifties, but looked older from years of anger and stress. Her once brown hair was already almost entirely grey, and her skin was starting to wrinkle. Despite her appearance, she was not in any risk of dying soon, for she kept herself well fed.

"Don't you realize it's the reaping today?" Her hawk-like face contorted in rage.

"Oh… right sorry" Percy started before she cut me off

"Don't apologize you mutt, just wake up the rest of the mouths and make breakfast for everyone" she ordered.

Percy bit his tongue, for being talked down to like that did not come easily to him. He woke up the other kids, four boys and two girls all younger than him, and got to work using the bread rations to make the tesserae bread from the reapings. Percy gave everyone some berries he got from the girl in his grade who goes hunting "secretly", as well as promising to get some meat from Greasy sae to celebrate another year of surviving the reapings later. This year everyone but our youngest boy at seven years old, Dane, would be putting their names in the bowl this year. Percy has been living at the orphanage since… he can't even remember but he must have been very young, for the only thing he can recall of his mom is a sugary sweet smell. Percy spent the rest of the morning trying to organize all the kids and get them to look nice for the reaping.

Percy examined himself in the mirror as he put his gray button down shirt on over his tan pants. He ran a hand through his hair in a useless attempt to tame it and took a deep breath before heading to the city square.

As Percy looked into the crowds from his spot in line he could see some familiar faces in the crowd such as Katniss the girl who he buys berries from, the older kid who he seems to see with her a lot, and other classmates who he can't help but think he might not see again. Before Percy knows it a hand grabs his and tries to take a sample of his blood, but the syringe seems to have broken. To get things moving a long quickly they scan a piece of his hair instead "Perseus Jackson age 16 check in" the peacekeeper says in a dull voice, "clear to go." On stage Percy could see the mayor, our only living survivor from the games Haymitch Abernathy, and the escort for the district 12 tributes Effie Trinket. She is wearing eight-inch heels and orange hair brighter than the sun that matched her equally bright dress and makeup. The video we watch every year about the history of the hunger games is played as well as the capitol's anthem. Effie walks up to the bowls at the center of the stage."Ladies first" she says as she makes a show of reaching into the first of two bowls. She pulls out a card and reads "Primrose Everdeen."

 **Sorry I do not know what happened to the first couple chapter of the story, so I redid them**


	2. Chapter 2

**I was gonna make this chapter a little longer but this seemed like a good stopping point. Again tell me your thoughts wether you like it or hate it. Disclaimer i do not own either of these book series**

Chapter 2

Percy pov

A strangled cry is heard in the sea of girls as sighs of relief follow and whispers spread like wildfire throughout the masses of people. The crowd eventually parts for a scared looking girl no older than twelve as she shuffled her feet towards the stage. She's different than most children from the Seam. She has blonde hair, blue eyes, and a kind face that seems out of place amongst the rest of her peers. Percy's heart pounded in his chest, and his head became clouded with anger. He was clenching his fist so hard his knuckles were white. _How can I just sit here and let this happen_ , Percy thought. A commotion starts as Katniss races towards her sister shouting her name hysterically and embraces her. Percy began to feel physically nauseous while watching the events unfold before him. Peacekeepers intervene and pry the girls apart, but Katniss shouts in a desperate cry "I VOLUNTEER AS TRIBUTE!" The entire district is silent not sure if they were imagining what they just heard, "I volunteer as tribute," she says in a much more confident voice. Effie seemed almost unsure of what to do. The last district twelve volunteer was over forty years ago. I can't remember what happened to the guy, but I know he didn't win.

"I think we have to introduce the tribute and ask for volunteers first…" Effie states.

"What's it matter? The girl wants to volunteer, let her," the Mayor grumbled from his seat. Effie thought for a second with an annoyed look on her face.

"Come along dear," Effie beckoned in her high pitched capital voice. Katniss walked to the stage with a stoic expression on her face. The girl, Prim, was crying out for her sister before an older boy I've seen hunting with Katniss picks her up and carries her away kicking and screaming. "And who might you be," Effie questioned brightly.

"Katniss… Katniss Everdeen," Katniss said with little emotion in her voice.

"Everdeen? Same last name. I take it that was your sister I called? I guess you didn't want her stealing all the glory," Percy's blood boils as he hears this capitol citizen make light of such a horrible situation _. If only there was something I could do_ he thought. "Let's give a round of applause for our volunteer!"

No one claps but suddenly someone presses their three middle fingers to their lips, and then raises them up. The action is infectious and soon everyone including himself was taking part in it. It was a sign of admiration, respect, and love, but it was also used at funerals for those that have passed. Katniss put up a strong front, but Percy was good at reading people. He could tell how frightened she really was.

Haymitch lets out a drunken laugh from his seat, " I like this one, she's got spunk. More than you!" Haymitch slurs before getting up and acting like he was about to make a profound speech. Just as he opened his mouth and put his hand up, vomit came spewing out over the side of the stage as he passed out in a heap. It almost sounded like he was calling out the Capitol?

"Now for the gentlemen," Effie said quickly taking a card out of the bowl, "Peeta Mellark" a stocky blonde haired boy in relatively nice clothes began to make his way toward the stage. Percy recognized him from some of the classes he used to take before he had to quite school. Peeta was pretty charismatic and handsome. He came in second in the district high school wrestling tournament. He might be able to do better than most district twelve tributes, but Percy knew that wasn't enough to win the games. He hated himself for what he was about to do…

"I volunteer!" Percy shouted as more whispering erupted amongst the crowd.

"No one seems to have any respect for rules," Effie muttered to herself in an exasperated tone. She puts her smile back on as he feels himself move his feet almost against his will toward the stage.

"And who might you be young man?" Effie says excited she finally has an interesting set of tributes.

"Perseus Jackson," He's surprised because his voice sounds much more confidant than he feels.

"What an unusual name," Effie states, "I'm sure you'll leave quite the impression on the capitol."

He didn't know how to respond… so he didn't. Percy looked over at the girl who shares the spotlight, and she seems to be studying him calculatingly. She's lean and a little skinny from probably not always having enough to eat. She's also a little on the short side at maybe 5'3. High cheekbones and an elegant braid give her an almost princess like appearance. Percy could feel her eyes taking in every detail of him like a cobra before it lunges. Strangely the look almost felt… familiar?

"Well this has been lovely!" Effie beams at the crowd. They watch on as if trying to decide what type of flowers would look best on Percy and Katniss' graves. After the mayor gives another speech that Percy pays no attention to, the two tributes are ushered into the Justice building. From there they separate into two rooms to say final goodbyes to loved ones. He knew Denise wouldn't bother to take the kids in to say goodbye, and he didn't remember having anyone else, so he was surprised when the door opened and a boy is pushed into the room.

"You have three minutes." A cold voice is heard from outside the room.

Peeta looks at him with a sad face and slouches his shoulders, "why'd you do it?"

Percy is about to answer when he realizes he can't think of one.

"I mean don't misunderstand, I'm very grateful it's just… I don't know anyone who would do something like that for me… not even my own family."

"Maybe… Maybe I did do it for..." Percy struggled to finish the sentence.

"What?" Peeta pressed.

"I don't know," Percy shrugged.

"Look whatever your reason is for volunteering… promise me your gonna come back," he seems to be trying to reassure himself, "I just… don't want anyone dying on my behalf."

"Yeah man of course I will." He had no intention of coming back.

Percy gave a lopsided grin, "Pretty stupid of me volunteering huh?"

"Or pretty brave…" then Peeta thought for a second, "but yeah probably pretty stupid." Peeta smirked.

"Maybe a bit of both?" They shared a chuckle and Percy couldn't help but think about a friendship they might have had if the circumstances were different.

They share an awkward hug and Peeta walks toward the door. He stops just as his hand reaches the knob and looks back, "Don't let them change you." And with that he opens the door and walks out.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer i do not own either book series.**

Chapter 3 Percy Pov

The peacekeepers escort Percy out of the building and he barely notices the reporters and questions that are being asked around him. He's too busy contemplating the last words Peeta told him before leaving _. Don't let them change you? Was he asking me not to kill anybody? Because that seems pretty hard. Maybe he was just talking about not letting them put makeup on me._ Percy laughed out loud at the thought of Peeta outraged by the fact that makeup would be put on him.

Percy was so busy laughing he didn't notice he'd reached the entrance for the train until he turned right into the doorframe. This only caused him to laugh harder as he gave Katniss a lopsided grin and waved to the reporters _. Did Katniss's face turn red when I smiled at her?_ Percy thought. It was the middle of January so he shouldn't be too surprised.

The pair was escorted to their rooms, and was told to wash up and be ready for dinner as Effie wrinkled her nose and said they smelled funny. Percy's room was huge, probably almost as big as his entire orphanage back home. _Home._ Was that what he was calling that place now? It certainly didn't feel like a home should feel. Of course he wouldn't really know what a home would feel like he supposed, but he was confident it wasn't supposed to be like that. He stripped down and turned the shower on. The water woke up his senses and suddenly his surroundings seemed sharper and it felt like he had a triple shot of caffeine. There had to be a hundred different types of water ranging from a soft sun shower, to hot steam like a sauna. At one point it seemed the side jets were having a water gun fight, and he was caught in the middle of it. It could him by surprise and he slipped an landed right now his back That didn't even compare to the amount of soaps they had. A soap type for every part of your body and about a thousand different smells. Things like hot chocolate, strawberry, "new car smell", and more. Percy really liked the one that smelled like fresh homemade chocolate chip cookies. It made him homesick though he couldn't figure out why, because they never had cookies back at the orphanage. He must have spent a long time in that shower because loud banging was going outside his room and a voice was calling him for dinner. He tried to find a brush, but realized there wasn't one. A magazine was on the counter full of hairstyles. He didn't have time to browse and settled for a windswept look long on top and shorter on the sides. He found a button and pressed the catalog code into the device. His hair was styled exactly like the picture in a matter of moments. Percy went to the closet and pulled out a pair of tan khaki pants and a long sleeve ocean blue tee shirt.

Percy rushed down the hall following the smell of delicious food. As he entered the dining cart he noticed Effie and Katniss sitting at the table eating already.

Effie turned "Oh Perseus dear," Effie started.

"Just Percy's fine, Perseus is a little too formal." Percy interrupted

" ok, Percy… thanks for joining us please take a seat. I was just telling Katniss about how much better her table manners were than last year's tributes." Her accent combined with Katniss's outraged expression made him want to burst out laughing. He probably would have, but his thoughts had already moved onto a more pressing matters… food.

Everything smelled delicious and looked just as good. He stacked his plate and began shoveling down food having to remind himself to breathe. He looked over at Katniss and noticed she was turning a little green. She probably hadn't had enough food like this since probably ever.

After dinner Katniss and Percy sat down and watched the recap of the reapings. There was no surprise that districts one, two, and four had volunteers. Five to be exact. They always train for the games. The boy from district one seemed tall, 6'3 at least, not very wide, but definitely athletic. He had a forgettable face with a simple dirty blonde haircut, but a cocky demeanor. The girl tribute seemed pretty tall and well built with long blonde hair and pale skin. She was attractive and I could tell she knew it. The boy from two was well over 6'' with an athletic and muscular build. He had short-cropped blond hair and a handsome yet definitely cruel face. Anger boiled within Percy as he watched him walk cockily onto the stage with a wolf-like smile on his face. He almost reminded Percy of someone, but he couldn't remember whom. The girl tribute was short but athletic. She had medium length brunette hair and a serious case of baby face. She was entirely too happy about killing twenty-three other kids. The glint in her eye seemed to say _hey I'm going to kill you while laughing like a psychotic devil child_. Districted three's tributes were underwhelming and he didn't pay too much attention to them. The girl from district four seemed less likely to win than the other careers but had tan skin, black hair, and a forgettable face. A few others stood out to him such as the girl tribute from district five, and the pair from district eleven. The girl was much too young and didn't stand a chance of winning. The boy was big and burly, and he too almost reminded him of someone. The thought made my stomach turn as an unexplained sadness overtook him.

Katniss pov

So, she found eight potential threats. The careers from districts one, two, and four were a given. They always cheated an almost always won the games. The girl from district five seemed smart like a fox, she might be difficult to take down. The boy from district eleven. He didn't volunteer or come from the career districts, but he looked as big as any career she'd ever seen. In fact she wouldn't be surprised if the careers try to make an alliance with him considering there was strangely no district four male career.

That left one possible threat… Katniss glanced over at the boy sitting in the chair next to her. She have no clue what to think of the male tribute from district twelve. In fact when she _did_ think about him her thoughts got all jumbled in her head. He looks nothing like the usual district twelve kid. If anything she'd say he looks like he's from district four. He's at least 6'2 with a lean and muscular frame like he not only had enough to eat but also spent hours working out every day. She knew he lived in that orphanage his whole life so it amazed her that he could manage to look the way he did. His skin was tanned like he spent hours in the sun each day. This was also weird because no one in district twelve was ever tan considering the climate of the place. Another reason that was weird was because she knew he quit school last year so that he could work in the mines to help feed the rest of the orphans. She shivered thinking of the mines, which caused her to think of her dad. _Stop Katniss_ she told herself, _you never know who's watching, you can't afford to look weak._

She shook the thoughts from her head and continued trying to solve the puzzle of her partner tribute. A commotion from the door shook her from her thoughts. Katniss's nose identified the source before her eyes. Haymitch. The sharp smell of alcohol on his breath was difficult to ignore. He stumbled into the table and started eating all the food he could fit into his mouth. Effie wrinkled her nose and sighed in exasperation.

"I'll call one of the avox's to help you to your room," Effie said in disgusted tone.

"You know Effie, I've never liked you," Haymitch slurred drunkenly, "I want to see the tributes for myself if you please…"

Effie left the room in a huff. Percy got up to avoid Haymitch, "sit" Haymitch said simply. Percy seemed to be distracted, and blurted out, "There's still throw up on your shirt."

Haymitch looked genuinely surprised by the comment. He looked shocked for a second, but then burst into a fit of laughter, "Do you always speak so bluntly?" Haymitch stopped eating and looked at us hard. The silence made Katniss uncomfortable, and Percy couldn't stop fidgeting in his seat.

"This might be the best pair of tributes I've ever had." Haymitch said while still examining us like we were a particularly unusual bottle of wine.

"Hey aren't you like supposed to give us advice on how to win?" Percy asked.

"Here's some advice… stay alive," Haymitch laughed at his own joke.

"How'd you stay alive?" Percy asked completely unfazed.

"I fought," Haymitch stated rather obviously.

"You can fight?" Percy asked incredulously.

"Hey listen I can…" Haymitch started.

Katniss drove a knife down hard barely missing Haymitch's hand, "as amusing as our deaths might be to you, they aren't to us, so if you aren't going to be helpful then stay away."

"So," Haymitch pondered, "Looks like I really do have a couple of fighters this year." He thought for a moment "I'll make you a deal, don't get in the way of my drinking and I'll stay sober enough to help you."

"Deal," Percy said quickly.

"Good , now if you'll excuse me," Haymitch passed out mid sentence.

Percy and Katniss walked over to Haymitch. He smelled so bad she wanted to throw up. Percy sensed her discomfort. "I'll carry him back to his room," he offered.

"I'll send some avox's to help you," Katniss suggested.

"Nah I'm good trust me," Percy assured her before picking Haymitch up as easily as one might swing a backpack over their shoulder. Okay that's weird. Haymitch might not be the heaviest guy in the world, but he still weighed at least 180 pounds. And she knew from carrying her kills back to the district that dead weight was pretty heavy. He walked down the train to Haymitch's room and closed the door. She soon heard the noise of the shower being turned on.

She was so tired from the stress of the day that she didn't even change out of her clothes. As soon as my head hit the pillow she was out like a light.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer i do not own either book series.**

Chapter 4

Katniss pov

She awoke to the sound of banging coming from the door, "Everybody up! We have a big big day ahead of us!" Katniss groaned into her pillow and pondered whether she should stay here for the rest of eternity. It sounded like a pretty good idea beings as though her other option was to fight twenty-three other kids to the death for entertainment. "Katniss are you up in there? Breakfast is ready."

She sighed and heaved herself up from her comfy cocoon of blankets. She picked a simple grey top and a pair of jeans and slipped them on. She walked into the dining cart and noticed her district partner and Haymitch were nowhere to be found. As Katniss was just finishing breakfast she heard a loud thud and an annoyed grumble. Soon sluggish footsteps could be heard coming into the room and an exhausted Haymitch sat down heavily. A voice came from the door, "Someone's hung-over," Percy said leaning on the doorframe with a smirk. "Here," he said as he fixed a cup of coffee and some crackers, "This should help with that, not the first time I've dealt with a cranky drunk." He frowned as if trying to remember something, but then shrugged his shoulders and began eating as much food as humanly possible. Actually she's pretty sure no human could eat that much..

Effie and Katniss sat in an awkward silence. Effie looked up and was about to say something, but Katniss gave her a look that made her regret what she was about to say. Katniss couldn't help but think about home. Prim probably slept in mom's room last night. She wondered if she'd be at school today. She wondered what her classmates were saying. Probably nothing good. She guessed she's been pretty guarded her whole life, but hey when your dad dies and you can't even depend on your mom to feed you, you tend to loose trust. She hoped Gale's traps were good today, so Prim and Mom could have a good meal. Katniss made him promise to look after her mom and sister, not that he wouldn't have done it anyways. She doesn't know why she's thinking about all of this right now.

Katniss looked up to see Haymitch staring at her intently. Not in a gross perv way, though she'd would almost rather it. He seemed to be sizing her up the way the butcher does when she trade him her catch. Then his eyes moved to Percy who seemed to think it was a staring contest and was trying his hardest not blink. He turned back to me, "you seem to be in good shape, a little small but you can turn that into an advantage. Good for hiding. Once the capitol is done with you you'll look pretty enough. Can you use that knife for anything other than hitting tables?"

She threw it at the wall and it luckily hit in-between two boards making me seem better than she actually is. "I'm better with a bow."

"That's good. I don't think I've ever seen the games without at least one knife. Hell a few years back there was literally only one knife. And bows are one of the more frequently appearing weapons in the games."

Katniss recalled the games he was talking about. It was before her dad died, and it only lasted about a day of brutal hand to hand combat before the most heavily favored career got a sword as a gift from the sponsors and took everyone out in the game, starting with his fellow career who had the only other weapon.

Haymitch turned to Percy, "Now this one… this one has some serious potential. I've never mentored a tribute like you." He turned to Effie, "Do you think he's attractive?"

Effie turned a violent shade of pink and muttered, "very." Katniss hadn't thought about it, but of course she was right. His face seemed to be perfectly chiseled, almost god-like, highlighted by perfect white teeth, a deep tan, and a muscular build. He even blushed attractively. It only made her hate him more. He'd probably have no problem getting sponsors.

"Now this is someone I can work with," Haymitch nodded approvingly, "And you look like you could go toe to toe with those two brutes from two and eleven. Is there any skills you have that could help you in the games?"

"Besides my winning smile?" Percy asked hopefully

"Yes, besides that," Haymitch answered.

"Well I don't know…" Percy answered unsure of himself.

"You two need to stick together as long as you can. Katniss, with your looks you'll be able to pull a decent amount of sponsors granted your interview goes well enough and you can score at least an eight, and I don't think you'll have any problems with that. And Perseus here is going to pull a lot of sponsors no matter what, because they love a pretty face. So I think it will benefit both of you to form an alliance." Haymitch reasoned.

Percy looked at Katniss and nodded, "Done deal."

"Woah, woah, woah, not done deal. I barely know this kid and I'm going to have to kill him eventually anyways. I'd rather not feel bad about it when the time comes." Katniss started, "And how do I know I can trust him not to kill me in my sleep or something."

Percy looked genuinely offended by that. Sorry, but it's true.

"What did I ever do to you! How can you already not trust me. I can't believe you'd think I would _betray_ you in the games." Percy said heatedly.

"Well first of all…" Katniss started before Haymitch cut her off.

"Katniss that's enough. Whether you like it or not your gonna need at least one ally in the arena. Now the smart move would be to make him that ally because he seems like one of the more likely tributes to win this game. Between the two of you, you could actually stand a chance in these games. He's putting himself out on the line just as much as you are. Maybe more so considering we already know your talent with a knife and bow."

Katniss tried to come up with a reason to disagree but he seemed to have pretty flawless logic, "fine" she grumbled.

"Good, now we can move on to what's going to happen in the capitol," Haymitch told us, "First thing you need to do is not resist what the prep crew does to you."

"But…" Katniss started.

"No buts, let them do whatever they want and don't complain."


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series**

Chapter five

Percy Pov

He couldn't believe Katniss didn't trust him. Betrayal just wasn't in his DNA. It made him furious, but he guessed it must be hard to trust anyone knowing that in a few short days you could end up on the receiving end of their blade.

Suddenly the train went dark as they went under a tunnel. The tracks came across at least three other tunnels before he could see the capitol. The view was breath taking. Skyscrapers over a thousand feet tall with ultra modern sleek designs, bustling streets filled with bizarre looking people and luxury cars. Art could be seen on every street corner with a large monument in the middle of the city dedicated to the heroes of the rebellion seventy-four years ago. A sparkling blue lake surrounded the city with sailboats lining the docks. It seemed familiar for some reason, and he longed for something even though he couldn't figure out what it was. A crazy thought came to him. He had a strange urge to jump out of the train and dive as deep as he could into the lake and never come out. A voice in his head whispered _do it little hero. It'd be better than what's in store for you_. It sent a chill down his spine and he thought he might have been going crazy. Percy shook it off and went back to looking at the capitol. The train seemed to be arriving at the station. Percy smiled and waved at the waiting capitol citizens as they craned their necks to get a first look at arriving tributes. Percy looked at Katniss and noticed she stayed rooted to her spot looking at him strangely. "What?" Percy asked, "One of them might be rich." She rolled her eyes at him, and he turned his attention back to the citizens as the train pulled to a stop in the station.

The door opened and Effie walked out first. Percy followed behind her with Katniss following him and Haymitch bringing up the rear. He tried his best to give a dazzling smile to the crowd and even gave a playful wink at a group of girls. Percy wished he could say he felt sick to his stomach at the capitol people, but at the moment he was basking in their glory for all he was worth. Percy looked back at Katniss who still wore a stoic expression on her face. Haymitch gave a small nod at him encouraging him to keep up the act.

They finally made it to the remake center. It was absolute torture. Percy would almost rather be in the mines right now. Almost. They plucked his eyebrows and shaved the stubble he'd been trying to grow out. Then they put him in an ice bath and scrubbed at least a layer of his skin off. "Count yourself lucky darling," One of them told him noticing his grimace, "we won't need to put makeup on you"

Percy rolled his eyes, "Oh believe me I'm feelin lucky." The girl with purple iris's that matched her purple hair, he thinks her name was adella, seemed hesitant about something for some reason. She finally spoke up, "Uh Perseus?"

"Please, call me Percy. I don't like my friends using that name." he cut in.

"Ok, Percy how did you uh," she pointed a finger that looked more like a talon at him. Percy looked around confused.

One of her partners with lightly green tinged skin like chlorophyll spoke up for her, "She means the scars."

"Oh," Percy said shocked, "I uh… that's funny. I can't remember for some reason."

Now that she pointed it out Percy noticed dozens of scars littered across his body. They almost seemed like battle scars or something. Battle scars? Wait a second. Percy grimaced. The thought faded away and his head started hurting again like yesterday morning.

Adella spoke in her high-pitched capitol voice, "It's ok if you don't want to tell us. I know there're a lot of atrocities in those savage districts. It's just… you have so many…" she trailed off.

An awkward silence followed as they finished prepping him for his stylist. When they were done they left him to wait for his stylist naked. Normally Percy would've felt embarrassed, but after the prep team got to know him pretty personally he was used to it. The only thing that made him feel self-conscious were the scars that he couldn't help tracing his finger across. _Why hadn't I noticed them before?_ He was shaken from his thoughts when the door finally opened.

A young women only a couple years older than Percy walked in. Compared to most of the capitol people he had seen so far, she was pretty mild. She had dark skin with gold eyeliner and lipstick. Her hair was short with gold highlights and she was wearing a white pencil skirt. She had a small nose and big hazel colored eyes. She was very pretty… and Percy was naked. The embarrassment started to creep back in.

She walked around him in a circle examining every inch of his body. Eventually she allowed Percy to put a white robe on and they sat down. "'I'm Danica, your stylist. You must be starving." Percy only nodded in response.

Danica clicked a button under the table they were sitting in front of, and food rose from seemingly nowhere.

Chicken, brown rice, soup, pasta, different types of vegetables, and water; He dug in while she watched him eat silently for a moment.

"I don't know how familiar you are with the previous district twelve costumes, but you can thank me because we won't be using any of those ideas. Cinna, your district partner's stylist, and I have decided that it would be best to showcase that you're allies in the ceremony. Going along with that idea, we have decided to give you matching costumes." Danica explained. Percy nodded thinking that was pretty normal.

Danica had a glint in her eyes as she smiled slyly, "Now, how afraid are you of fire…"

 **Sorry, don't know why this chapter was messed up for awhile**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer, I don't own either book series.**

Chapter 6

Katniss pov

Percy and Katniss were below the training center getting ready for the opening ceremony. The mentors were mingling and sharing jokes with each other. Haymitch was talking with district eleven's mentor, chaff, and none other than the capitols golden boy himself, Finnick Odair. Katniss couldn't imagine how Haymitch and Finnick Odair became friends. All the other tributes were keeping to themselves with exception to the careers who were laughing at how bad the other districts costumes were. Districts one and two of course had nice costumes. The district one tributes' costumes seemed to be made of thousands of glittering diamonds so they shimmered every time they moved. District two's tributes were dressed in military fatigues. District seven's costumes looked like an actual hollowed out tree with arm and leg holes. District eleven had overalls and fake pitchforks (wouldn't want the tributes getting any ideas now would we).

Katniss's "ally" and her were dressed in plain black and grey formfitting suits. She looked over and felt a twinge of jealousy. His outfit highlighted every muscle on him. His abs, pecs, biceps, and triceps looked practically painted over. Katniss knew she probably looked unimpressive standing next to him. That's ok though because she could use that to her advantage. The other tributes might underestimate her and not worry about her until the later stages of the games.

One of the horses that pull our carriage whinnied uncomfortably. Percy stood there in shock, "I knew the capitol could create their own animals, but I didn't know they could make a talking horse!"

Katniss looked up at him in confusion, "What are you talking about?"

"You didn't just hear the horse say _free me lord, I can't stand these restraints_? _"_ Percy asked cautiously.

"Maybe these games are getting to you," Katniss shook her head.

He chuckled and agreed. Then he loosened the restraints on the horse until it looked more comfortable. His fingers worked with dizzying speed. Katniss was about to ask how he did that when she saw Cinna and Percy's stylist Danica walking over in the corner of her eye. Haymitch soon followed.

"Now remember, the fire is synthetic so you don't have to worry about getting burnt." Cinna said for the hundredth time though she still wasn't convinced. "Just relax and at least look to be having some fun out there Katniss," Cinna told her before embracing her.

"Remember you two, don't show any fear. That could be the difference between life saving sponsors or death in the games." Haymitch instructed.

"No fear right," Katniss heard Percy grumble to himself, "I'm gonna burn to death… looking tough."

Katniss looked over and saw districted one's chariot start to leave. They quickly climbed into the charcoal black chariot. Cinna pressed a button and we instantly set ablaze. On cue the horses started on their path. Katniss heard someone trying to get her attention from behind. She looked back and saw Portia and Cinna saying something and holding up their hands. Katniss couldn't here them though as the cheer of the crowd grew closer.

"What are they saying?" Percy voiced her question.

"I'm not sure," they were pointing at their clasped hands now.

"Hold hands?" he instantly grabbed her hand before she could object. Katniss felt my cheeks grow warm, and it wasn't from the flames. She saw their faces appear on a jumbo screen to her left. Even she had to say they looked fantastic, even better than district one's costumes. She heard chants from the crowd, "KAT-NISS! KAT-NISS! KAT-NISS!" She grew confident and blew some kisses to the guys in the crowd. They went absolutely wild. Katniss looked over and saw Percy wink at a group of girls that almost fell out of their seats. The chariots finally reached the President's house and did a final lap around the circular driveway before coming to a stop in front of the balcony. The flames on our costumes had finally started to pitter out.

 _President Snow._ He looked like the type of villain her dad used to describe in her bedtime stories. He wore a crisp suit with a white rose in his lapel. He coughed and Katniss could swear she could see blood on his handkerchief. His face stretched into an unnaturally wide smile, while his eyes kept the same lifeless cold stare. The anthem began to play, and he went into a long speech of introduction to "welcome" the tributes to the capitol As if they had a choice. Throughout his speech Katniss could see the faces of different tributes being displayed on the jumbo screens. She couldn't help but notice that the camera stopped on district twelve more than any other district.

After they arrived back at the tribute center Effie walked over as fast as she could in her nine inch heels to congratulate them. "You are the talk of the games! Your costumes made a huge splash! I had my doubts beings as though you're from district twelve, but you surprised everyone!" Effie was absolutely beaming. "I told them, I said you never know… if you put enough pressure on coal, it turns into a diamond!" she seemed very pleased with herself about that one. Katniss decided not to correct her, because it wouldn't do anyone any good. Around the room she could see other tributes staring at Percy and Katniss in envy. The tributes from district two seemed especially venomous.

The group made their way up to their floor, which happened to be the last one, and everyone was absolutely buzzing from the reaction they got in the introduction "W're the lucky ones!" Effie beamed, "Us being district twelve get the penthouse."


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer; I do not own either book series.**

Chapter7

Percy Pov

When they got to their floor, dinner was already laid out and waiting to be gobbled up. Percy devoured everything and anything that came close to his mouth. Everyone went into the entertainment room to watch the recap of the tribute parade, but he decided to stay back. He didn't want to let all this good food go to waste.

Maybe an hour later Percy heard someone coming back into the dining room and looked up. Haymitch snorted and shook his head when he saw Percy still eating. He had a big bottle of scotch in his hand. Percy looked at his bottle pointedly.

"Hey, I said I would stay sober enough to help you two win, I didn't say I'd stop drinking all together," Haymitch said.

"Hmm, fair enough. Going back to your room?" Percy questioned

He let out a sigh, "no actually."

Percy gave him a curious look, "Then where are you going?"

"Come on I'll show you, I guess I could use a drinking partner,"

He led Percy towards the emergency stairway, "So…" Percy started, "are you gonna tell me where we're going?"

"You'll see soon enough." They started walking up the stairs.

"I thought Effie said we had the penthouse." Percy said.

"We do," he replied.

He opened the door and the nighttime outdoor air reached his lungs. "Are we…" Percy started.

"…on the roof" Haymitch confirmed.

"Since when are tributes allowed on the roof unsupervised?"

"Oh, they don't mind, besides," he looked at Percy sharply "you are supervise… by me." He took a sip from the bottle.

Percy laughed out loud at that, "If that's how you want to phrase it," he said while grabbing the bottle taking a small sip. He coughed in surprise, "ew how do you drink this stuff?" Percy asked incredulously.

This time Haymitch laughed and said, "your drinking it wrong. You need to take a bigger sip to get the flavor."

Percy looked down at the liquid and shrugged taking a long sip. This time it went down much smoother. "Better?" Haymitch asked.

"Better," Percy confirmed.

Percy looked around and noticed a garden with a fountain and running water. It was nice but he felt like he'd seen a more impressive one somewhere else. There it was again. Like he was stepping on a stair without realizing he'd reached the top only to bring his foot down hard.

"What?" Haymitch said confused.

Percy realized he must've been making a face, "nothing, " he lied. "So…" Percy pondered, "what's stopping me from jumping off this roof and killing myself before someome does it for me? Hypothetically of course."

"This," Hyamitch said while picking up a rock from the fountain. He threw it at the city, but it bounced off and made a zapping sound while flying right back into his hand. His face contorted in pain as if a painful memory resurfaced.

"What?" Percy blurted out before he could stop himself.

"Nothing," he lied. "Give me the bottle."

Percy handed it to him and he took a long swig. He coughed and wiped his mouth. Percy decided not to press the subject. They talked for a while about the games, Percy's strategy for the interview, what he should do in the training center, and what'll happen when the horn goes off. They took turns drinking from the bottle. Percy knew he should've been paying more attention because this drunken mess might actually know a thing or two but between the scotch, Percy's attention span, and the sounds and sights from the city below he couldn't focus that well.

"Perseus?" Haymitch said.

"Call me Percy, Perseus is too formal." he reacted.

Haymitch nodded, "does it feel right?"

"Does what feel right?" Percy asked a little confused.

"Murdering children for entertainment." Haymitch answered.

"Of, course it doesn't feel right." Percy answered immediately.

Haymitch paused for a second, "It's just… when I mentor tributes in the games I feel like I'm helping the capitol to murder more kids."

"I never thought of it that way." Percy nodded thoughtfully.

"Things need to change, the capitol needs to pay for what they've done." Haymitch was getting worked up now, "What they've done to me, to you and Katniss, to the thousands of other people they murdered. Not just in the games, but with famine and disease."

Did he just say what Percy thought he said? It almost sounded like he was calling for another rebellion. Percy looked around the rooftop trying to spot any hidden cameras. He couldn't find any. "You really think that's possible?"

He sighed and took a sip, "I don't know. I suppose I didn't think winning the hunger games against forty-seven other people was possible." Haymitch says bitterly, "but then again, no one ever really wins the games. I didn't ask to be an alcoholic."

"Woah Mr. Buzzkill way to bring down the mood." Percy said.

Haymitch gave a chuckle, "Yeah my bad."

Percy stepped over to the railing careful not to lean too far. Though there were far larger buildings surrounding us, the view was still breath taking. He could still see the funny looking capitol people celebrating in the streets. "so weird," Percy snorted.

"Yeah, you are pretty weird." Haymitch laughed.

"No, not me stupid. Them, the dudes down there." Percy pointed forgetting that the force field was up. It zapped his hand back and it started to smoke slightly. The weird part was that he couldn't feel it. Must've been the alcohol.

"Clearly brains wont be your forte in the games," Haymitch said sarcastically.

They joked around for a while longer; each trying their hand at imitating the capitol accent. Percy thought he was getting pretty good at it, but he couldn't be sure because Haymitch busted out laughing every time he tried. The city started to quiet ever so subtly. Haymitch looked at the watch he was forced to wear with his suit. "We should probably get back down before Effie throws a fit."

"Yeah, wouldn't want that," Percy replied.

They stumbled toward the door. Percy tripped on the stairs and fell down. Haymitch laughed and called him an idiot. Then he tripped on the stairs and fell down. They made their way back to their rooms. Percy barely made it to the bathroom in time to throw up in the toilet. He crawled back to his bed and within seconds he was in deep sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer, I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 8

Katniss Pov

Katniss awoke to a knock on his door, "Up, up, up! It's another big big day!"

She was still reeling from the reaction she got from the capitol last night. Caesar Flickerman had even dubbed her the "Girl on Fire" in the recaps. She gathered her thoughts and got up to get ready for the day. Once Katniss was done she went into the dining room to eat. Yet again, Haymitch and Percy were late. In fact they didn't show up to breakfast at all. It was five minutes before Percy and Katniss were supposed to go down to the training center and they still weren't here. Effie was getting madder than Katniss has ever seen her. Katniss decided she was pretty scary when she was mad. She stormed to Percy's room and started banging as loud as she could on the door. She received no reply. "I didn't want to have to do this!" she yelled as threateningly as she could in her weird capitol accent.

Effie opened the door with her master key and was about to march in when a pillow rocketed at a velocity Katniss didn't think possible and nailed her in the face. "Get out," groaned a voice from inside the room. Effie's hair was messed up and she was furiously trying to brush it back into place. The sight would've been funny if the look on her face wasn't so murderous.

Percy shuffled out of his room disheveled. He was wearing the same clothes from yesterday. He looked almost as bad as Haymitch looked the day before. Maybe it was a bad idea to let him stay in the dining room by himself after all. He was about to sit down at the dining table when Effie started directing him towards the elevator. "No time, training started a minute ago." Effie said hurriedly.

"But… food," Percy argued weakly as the door opened and he was shoved inside.

Percy and Katniss rode the elevator down in silence, both of them lost in their own world. They reached the tribute hall and were of course last to arrive, making their entrance very obvious and very embarrassing. All the tributes seemed to be in a semi circle around an older tough looking woman. "Ah, our two celebrities?" she said sarcastically, "so glad you cared to join us." The careers snickered at that.

"As I was saying," she was looking at Katniss and Percy pointedly, "You will each have two and a half days to learn as many skills as you wish, and on the third afternoon you will be evaluated by the game makers. I won't go into too much detail because you should all know this. Lunch will be served at one thirty, I suggest you get to work."

Percy yawned next to Katniss, "Is there a nap taking station we can try out?" he said while stretching.

Katniss rolled her eyes and dragged him toward a random deserted station. It happened to be the edible plants station. She knew most of the plants on the list from her dad, but it couldn't hurt to run through it again. The station expert was excited that she knew so many of the plants. Katniss looked over and saw her ally was not having the same success. "Where's the pizza plant?" he muttered while answering wrong yet again.

The expert seemed dumbfounded by the sheer amount of incorrect answers you could get on a fifty-fifty choice. He tried to teach Percy some tips on how to find traits that certain lethal plants carry but he was asleep before the first tip was even given. Katniss was starting to think this guy might be more trouble than he's worth.

Next, they made their way to the fire making station. Katniss already knew how to make a pretty decent fire if she had some matches, but there was no guarantee she'd have matches in the arena. With some help from the instructor Katniss was finally able to make a fire without a match. Percy was again, next too useless at this. Katniss decided he wasn't going to get any better and moved on to the shelter making station. She was actually surprised because he seemed to be pretty good at this one. He was able to put rocks, logs, moss, and grass together to make a pretty decent hiding place. She thought hers was good too. He seemed bored though and wanted to leave.

They were careful not to bump into any tributes, well Katniss was careful at least. Percy knocked into every tribute he saw. His luck ran out though when they were walking past the sword section. He was looking at all the blades in a trance and walked right into Cato, the district two tribute. "Watch it twelve," Cato said pushing the still oblivious Percy. Cato grunted as though his victim weighed a lot more than he thought he would. Percy barely moved.

"Twelve? My name's Percy ya know." Percy said offended.

"Like I care what your name is." Cato sneered, "Only the victor gets remembered."

Percy jutted a thumb out in Cato's direction with and turned to Katniss with an incredulous look on his face like _can you believe this guy_? Cato's face flushed red with rage and he took a swing at Percy. _This is it_ Katniss thought, _my district partner would be dead before the games even began_. She was weighing the pros and cons of that in her head when Percy caught Cato's fist with reflexes that didn't seem humanly possible.

Neither Percy, nor Cato seemed to know what to do for a moment. Cato wrestled his hand out of Percy's grip, but Percy was too busy admiring himself to care. "You're gonna be the first one I kill twelve," Cato said while walking back to his allies.

Katniss wasn't sure what to make of that. Her partner might actually be more of a threat than he let on. She couldn't decide if she should be relieved or not. Katniss also knew that the careers would either be too scared to go for them right away, or they would make Percy and Katniss their first targets. "Come on," Percy said casually, "lets get our faces painted."

It was at this station that Katniss noticed the little follower they had attracted. Percy was too busy trying to paint a smiley face on his stomach to notice. He seemed disappointed because he painted it upside down. Katniss wasn't having much luck either. She was trying to decide where to go next when she saw a little girl watching her from the climbing station. It was the little girl from district eleven. She made Katniss think of Prim. Katniss _had_ to win for her, but she also knew she could never kill someone so young and innocent. Anger filled Katniss, the capitol had to pay for this somehow.

Percy was painting eyebrows on his smiley face. Katniss saw the female tribute from district ten watching him from the other side of the room giggling. She felt something like anger, but she wasn't sure at what. The Capitol, that's it.

"Come on," Katniss grumbled, "it's lunch time."

"Well someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed Ms. Sunshine," Percy said. She ignored him.

Most of the tributes either sat by themselves or sat with their tribute partner. The only exceptions were the five careers. They shunned the young boy from district four. His partner showed him no sympathy. Katniss almost did, but then she remembered that there's no room for sympathy in the arena. Percy managed to eat more food then the entire career table combined.

The rest of the day went by much faster. After lunch you had the freedom to choose when you wanted to leave the training floor. You could stay all the way till nine-thirty at night, because then the instructors had to go home. They decided to hit the rest of the survivor stations and leave the combat stations for tomorrow. Percy managed to surprise Katniss again at the knot tying station. He knew even more types of lethal knots than the instructor. The instructor asked him where he learned all of them but he just shrugged and said he just knew them. Then they went to the climbing and agility station. Even though he was twice her weight, he managed to beat Katniss cleanly in every obstacle course. Katniss would be lying if she said she wasn't more than a little annoyed.

They made their way back to our floor and went back to their rooms until dinner. Katniss needed a shower. She was finally starting to figure how to work the shower. She had the setting on warm light rain. Effie called them in for dinner. Haymitch asked the two tributes how their first day at the training center went. They told him how they went to all the survival lessons today and that they decided to hold off on combat until tomorrow.

Haymitch nodded, "That's good, many tributes overlook the survival lessons and focus on combat, but survival courses are almost as, if not just as important."

Haymitch thought for a second, "And another thing, Katniss, you told me you were good with a bow right?" Haymitch asked.

She nodded in reply. "Don't go to that station during training. No sense in practicing something you've already mastered, or letting the other tributes know your talent. Maybe learn to use a mace, or swing a sword."

Percy finally stopped eating when Haymitch said sword. He looked at Katniss questioningly. She rolled her eyes at him in response. After dinner Katniss left the dining hall. Percy got up to follow her. When they were in the bedroom corridor he said, "Hey wait a sec."

Katniss turned to him expectantly. He looked down and shuffled his feet. Her stare didn't change. "Well uh, we're going to be allies in the games right," he scratched his head, "I just um figured we haven't really gotten a chance to know each other yet…"

"I don't need a chance to know you better. In fact the less I know about you the better." Katniss stated a little coldly, "We might be allies in the games, but friendships don't survive the arena, and neither will the both of us.

He shook his head, "that's not entirely true. We might be able to trust each other better," he reasoned.

"Why do we need to trust each other better?" Katniss asked.

"Do you plan on sleeping in the arena?" He asked rhetorically, "because it might be easier when you don't have to worry about your ally slitting your throat in your sleep." He kind of had her on that one.

"Fine," Katniss relented with a sigh, "but I don't know where we can talk. They might have the whole floor wired."

He gave a lopsided smile that made her heart do an involuntary tap dance, "I know just the place."


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer, I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 9

Katniss Pov

"How'd you find this? They've never shown this place on T.V before," Katniss wondered, marveling at the beautiful garden.

"Haymitch showed me it last night." He said. She wondered what _that_ meant. Had Haymitch already chosen Percy as his favorite tribute? Would he not help her in the games?

She walked to the ledge and looked out. She gasped. The tallest building in district twelve was the mayors building, and even that was only a few stories high. This was like nothing she'd ever seen before. She leaned over and looked down. She began to feel dizzy.

"Careful," Percy said with a grin leaning on the rail.

He tossed a rock over the side, but there was a zap and a wall of light became visible for a second. The rock flew back onto the roof.

"Force field," Percy confirmed, "Because they're very concerned with our safety."

Katniss snorted and looked out over the city. The capitol never seemed to go to sleep. There were always cars moving, laughter echoing, and music playing. It was like organized chaos.

"Do you miss them?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said knowing whom he was referring too.

Percy nodded, "That was one of the bravest things I've ever seen," he told her.

"Don't think too highly of me. Not like I would've done it for some stranger." Katniss said clearly trying to hint at why he might have volunteered.

Percy didn't get the hint, "yeah, well the people who volunteer for no reason just want the glory and fame." Percy said with distaste, "Like those kids from the career districts."

"Is that why you did it?" Katniss pressed, "for the glory and fame?"

"What? No, why would you say that?" Percy asked.  
"Because you seem a lot like the tributes from districts one two and four," Katniss said.

"No I don't," he argued.

"Well let's see, you volunteered for the games, you're even stronger than Cato from district two, and maybe Thresh too, you knew more ways to kill someone with a trap than the instructor, you beat the obstacle course in record time…" Katniss listed off, "I could go on…"

He held up his hands in a time out gesture, "whoa whoa whoa," he paused, "… I beat the record?" He sounded pleased with himself.

"Your insufferable," Katniss rolled her eyes.

"Look, I didn't volunteer for me… for fame and glory and becoming rich. And honestly I didn't volunteer for Peeta Mellark, all that would've been much simpler," he leaned in closer to Katniss. The capitol must make really good shampoo because he made her feel like she was at the beach right now. Katniss knew that was ridiculous because they were on a rooftop in the middle of a huge city in the mountains thousands of feet above sea level. Her school had taken a field trip when she was young to district four. Katniss didn't know why she was thinking about this all of a sudden. "I volunteered… for you." Percy said looking at her with sea green eyes. She couldn't help but blush under the stare.

"What?" she asked softly. That didn't make sense at all.

"What you did, to save your sister." He explained moving closer, "the look on your sister's face when you volunteered to protect her… I knew that would be a thousand times worse if you died in the arena. I knew your friend would only be able to help your family for so long without you, so to answer your question "girl on fire",… I did it for you." His face was inches from hers.

Katniss didn't know what to think, in fact she _couldn't_ think. Her heart was beating rapidly and her brain was all muddled. She closed her eyes and took a breath to regain her focus…she really could imagine being on the quite beaches of district four right now. Katniss felt his lips brush against hers and she leaned in only to find he wasn't there anymore. She opened her eyes.

He looked at Katniss with a pained expression on his face, "You're gonna win, not me," he said with finality, "I'll make sure of it." With that he left the rooftop leaving Katniss to feel more confused about her ally than she had in the first place.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer I do not own either series.**

Chapter 10

Percy Pov

Why does life have to be so complicated? Percy had another dream about the blonde haired girl, only this time she was accompanied by queen peacock lady. Well, he didn't know if that was her actual name, but she had a regal face, wore a crown and an elegant white dress, and seemed to be "one with the peacocks". He knew how that sounded, but she was commanding the peacocks to attack the blonde haired girl, while shouting insults at her. Percy so badly wanted to help, but he couldn't move or call out to her. It didn't look like she needed it though. She seemed to be holding her own, sort of like a… hot, blonde, ninja princess. It was giving him a massive headache, and he didn't even think that was possible in dreams.

Percy woke up to Effie's knocking. He was trying to figure out the meaning of the dream, but he couldn't concentrate with all the banging. _Who is that girl, and why do I feel so connected to her. And why were Peacocks attacking her?_ This really confused the way he felt about Katniss. Scratch that, more confused than he already was. "Get up Percy!" Effie said in a forced pleasant tone, "We don't need a repeat of yesterday.

Percy groaned, "I'm up! You can stop your banging!" _why does my life have to be so complicated? Who did I piss off to deserve this?_ He got up and took a shower, brushed his teeth and got into a pair of brown khakis shorts and a plain white t-shirt.

He looked at the table to see Effie, Katniss, and surprisingly Haymitch. Katniss was refusing to look at him. Percy couldn't figure out if he was hurt or relieved by that. He ate as much as he could. Eggs, bacon, waffles, fruit, hash browns, breakfast sausage, pork roll sandwiches, and a _lot_ of water. Finally Effie looked at her watch and told them it was time to go. Percy was kind of relieved because the silence was getting to him. On their way out Haymitch told Katniss "remember not to use the bow and arrow station, no need to let the tributes know your secret weapon." She nodded and pressed the button for the training center.

It was just Percy and Katniss now, "Soooo…," he attempted to break the ice, "lovely weather we're having?" It sounded more like a question than a statement.

She still wasn't looking at him, "we're inside an elevator."

"Oh, right," Percy rubbed his neck sheepishly feeling himself blush, "hey I didn't do something to make you mad did I?"

"Which part are you referring too? Taking me up to "get to know each other"?, the mind games?, kissing me?" she said heatedly

"Well,…" Percy ventured. "If I had to guess… I'd say all three," it sounded pretty accurate to him.

She looked at Percy for the first time today; she looked at him with such venom he kind of wished she would stop. "Wow," she said with mock praise, "You might not actually be as dumb as you look."

"Ok, that was just hurtful," Percy said in shock. She kept her guarded expression.

"Look everything I said is _true._ I'm not playing mind games. I swear on the…" Percy stopped confused.

"What?," Katniss asked momentarily forgetting her anger.`

"I don't know, something just came to me," it was fading faster than it appeared.

He growled in frustration and punched the elevator wall causing an echoed bang. Just then the elevator doors opened, and the staring faces of tributes greeted them.

The head instructor looked at them coldly and said mockingly, "you two would be better off in theater with your dramatics."

Percy rolled his eyes and said to Katniss, "She's almost as mean as you."

Katniss gave him a glare. He gave her a grin.

After the last tributes had arrived the training lady said, "Ok, this is your last full day to train, so I'd get to it." The crowd dispersed into various stations.

They decided to go to the most common weapon stations first, to make sure they had enough time to train with weapons sure to be in the games. That meant first they would be going to the knife throwing station. There's basically two separate parts in the knife station. One is for knife throwing and one is for knife fighting. Percy was all right at the knife throwing section. It wasn't his cup of tea, but he managed to hit the target in the head or chest every time. He wasn't able to get any specific places like the eye or heart, but apparently he was good enough to get Clove's attention. She came up behind him and whispered in his ear, "we could make a good team, you and us." She gestured to the other four careers that were trying to look intimidating to the other tributes, and doing a fine job he might add. The district two tribute was getting awfully close to him

"Thanks but I already have an ally," Percy said apologetically.

"Oh her? You could do much better," She put a hand on his chest. Percy wondered what _that_ meant.

"Look I really appreciate the offer, but I'm only going if Katniss goes." Percy said more forcefully, removing her hand. Katniss seeing the commotion came up behind him.

"What's the problem," Katniss was talking to Percy but looking at Clove venomously.

"Nothing she was just asking where I learned to throw knives." Percy lied deciding there was no reason to stir up more tension.

"Yeah," Clove gave a forced smile, "He's almost as good as me," then she picked up a knife and hit the dummy right between the eyes. "Almost." She smiled and gave him a wink before walking away.

Percy cleared his throat, "So how's the knife fighting lesson going?"

She paused looking at him for a second, "not too bad I guess, I might not be entirely incapable at defending myself if I have a knife. What about you?"

Percy pointed to the knives in the firing range, "Same here."

"Thought you never used a weapon before?" she questioned.

"I don't know, maybe, it's hard to think about my time before the reaping for too long." He shrugged.

Well let's switch up."

"I thought you already knew how to throw a knife?'

"I may have gotten slightly lucky on the train." She said sheepishly.

Percy went to try out some of the daggers they had. The instructor was able to point out flaws in his technique, but he was able to figure it out pretty quickly. Percy sparred with the instructor. She seemed kinda slow actually. Percy was able to dodge all of her strikes though she able to block his own. Finally he was able to sweep her legs out from under her. She landed on the matt and his dagger was at her throat. He offered his hand and she begrudgingly took it. "Your not bad, you sure you've never fought with a knife before? The technique could use improvement but the reflexes and speed you used were some of the best natural talent I've ever seen."

Percy could feel himself blushing under the compliment, "Thanks, I just… I guess I just got good reflexes."

Katniss and he moved onto hand-to-hand combat next. He was doing really well actually. Just like the knife fighting in the last station, he was able to anticipate the instructors' kicks and punches like they were moving in slow motion. They were going over Greco-Roman wrestling techniques, and it seemed as though nobody could beat him. It took multiple instructors to even move Percy, much less beat him. They were so enamored they decided to weigh him. Percy weighed in at two hundred and twenty seven pounds. Percy didn't seem to see what the big deal was, because the hand-to-hand combat instructors were all in his weight range. They seemed to think that was exactly the problem.

Percy excelled at almost all of the stations actually. Trident, spear, and javelin throwing, a section dedicated to weapon combinations including sword/shield, knife and sword, and weighted nets and tridents.

Long range weapons? Forget it. They tried out the gun station, which had an assortment of rifles and handguns. Katniss was good at this station. She was able to hit her mark perfectly almost every time. Percy didn't think he managed to hit a single target. He wasn't worried though, because there was an unwritten rule that guns weren't allowed in the games. Some years ago they were used, but the Capitol citizens were in an uproar. Apparently there wasn't nearly enough, drama, violence, and blood for them. Needless to say the head games maker was never heard from again.

Percy thought he was actually worse at archery if that was possible. Katniss however, seemed to be even better at this. After a little practice she was hitting targets dead center in the eye. The instructor was so awed by her skill she didn't even notice when Percy almost killed her when he accidently let an arrow fly in the wrong direction.

Percy took a breath and pointed the arrow straight ahead at the dummy's forehead 15 yards away. It was lined up perfectly, so he released and let the arrow fly. Suddenly he heard a loud thump. "YES! I DID IT!" Percy shouted shaking his fist.

Katniss looked over in shock squinting at the target Percy was aiming at, "where? I can't see it?"

Percy pointed to the dummy with an arrow sticking out of the side of his head in triumph.

"Percy you do realize that's is in the knife throwing station right," Katniss asked trying to hold in a grin.

"Still counts." Percy was relieved her mood was improving.

"If you say so," she laughed.

"Come on I want to leave this station on a good note," Percy dragged her to the sword fighting station. He'd had his eye on this one since he saw it yesterday. There were dozens of different blades: weird M shapes, short straight blades, long heavy blades meant for two hands, and leaf shaped blades. None of them felt quite right though. Finally, he found a leaf shaped blade maybe three and a half feet in length.

Katniss was getting impatient, "come on we don't have all day just pick one."

Percy picked up the sword examining it. It wasn't perfect but it seemed to be the best he'd be able to find here, "I just wanted to make sure it fit right," Percy answered defensively.

The instructor wanted to see what they could do first so he had us spar with wooden weapons. Katniss made a wild lunged at Percy's chest to which he swung up with his sword blocking her attack easily. She tried to swing at his gut but he jumped back before making a slash at her arm. She winced and flinched back with her hand. Percy closed the distance quickly and wrestled the sword from her grip before she could even realize what had happened. The fight took less then ten seconds. The instructor was impressed with him. He decided to hand Percy over to his colleague to go over more advanced techniques while he worked with Katniss. The instructor tried to teach Percy techniques on some dummies. It became apparent pretty quickly that Percy was much better than the instructor guy. The instructor seemed to be getting annoyed, so he decided to test Percy in a spar. They started a few feet away from each other while his assistant rung a bell for them to start. The instructor closed the distance quickly. Percy let him approach. He sliced at Percy's neck, but Percy bobbed his head away easily. He gave the instructor a cheeky smirk knowing this would enrage him even more. He was right, and the instructor brought his sword down on Percy's head as hard as he could. Percy rolled between his feet and stabbed him in the back of his leg. He was brought to his knee with Percy's sword on his throat. He seemed just as easy as Katniss, at least when compared to him. They sparred a few times, but they all ended pretty quickly with Percy's sword forcing him into a very compromising position. He hadn't felt this alive in a long time. The instructor finally gave up in and moved to the next guy. He was waiting for Katniss when Percy saw Cato working with the swordsmen he was just sparring with. Cato wasn't quite as skilled as the instructor, but his huge physical advantage allowed Cato to overwhelm him. Inevitable the smaller instructor ended up on the ground. Cato looked up and saw Percy watching. He gave what was supposed to be an intimidating glare. Percy rolled his eyes, and turned back to Katniss. She slashed at her instructor's shoulder, but he sidestepped and knocked her sword out of the way. This left her unguarded and he gave her a whack in the rib. They discussed her mistakes for a few minutes before she caught Percy's eye and saw him waiting. She nodded and walked over to him. "So, where to now?" she asked.

"How about… our floor? I think we're pretty prepared for the games." Percy said hopefully.

"Fine, but if we die because you can't shoot a bow it's your fault." She warned.

"What if we die because you can't handle a sword?" Percy asked.

"Then it's still your fault," she reasoned.

"Yeah fair enough," Percy grinned.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 11

Percy pov

They got back to their rooms, and Percy showered before dinner. Once again Percy felt like he could sprint a thousand miles and hadn't spent the whole day training. Water seems to have that affect on him, don't ask why. He changed and headed to the entertainment room to watch TV before dinner. Since it was the week of the hunger games, most stations were showing highlights of previous games. He decided to watch to see if he could figure out how the game makers worked, and maybe give himself an inside edge. Unfortunately all tribute judging sessions are kept secret, however they did show interviews that the capitol loved and hated. He saw a lot of good-looking tributes with confident smiles and jokes as if they weren't about to die in a week. He also saw some of the bigger tributes chose to remain brooding and mysterious. The capitol seemed to find those the most likeable, while others that were considered some of the worst in hunger games history were critiqued for their meek behavior, quivering voices, bad fashion, and the occasional fainting. One young twelve year old peed himself on stage, and not even Caesar could work his way around that.

He heard footsteps and turned back to see whom it was. Katniss looked at what Percy was watching and wrinkled her nose, "how can you watch that?"

"Well it's not like there was much else on." he defended, "It's hunger games week, and besides there's some useful information in this."

"Like what?" She asked.

"Like to make the capitol like you should be: good looking, funny, and try _not_ to pee yourself," Percy listed off.

"Oh, right. How would I ever have found that out on my own," she said sarcastically, "anyways, I came in here to call you in because dinner is ready."

"Finally, it was beginning to seem like the hunger games had already started," Percy joked. She rolled her eyes in response.

"Hey you're not still mad at me are you?" he asked.

"No… I don't know… maybe?" Katniss said uncertainly, "It's just if we're really gonna be allies in the arena then I'd rather not play all the mind games."

"It's not a game I meant every word," Percy said.

She was about to respond when they heard Effie's voice from the table, "Meant every word about what?"

"About… me never using a weapon before," Percy was a natural liar. "I was better than Katniss expected at sword fighting."

"Yeah he had to have been lying when we talked to Haymitch on the train." Katniss caught on.

Effie was convinced, but Haymitch on the other hand didn't seem to be buying it.

"So…" Haymitch ventured, "what else is he good at Katniss?" he was trying to get her to slip up.

"Honestly it was hard to find a weapon he didn't know how to use." Percy blushes under the compliment.

Haymitch set his knife and fork down, "Is that so?"

"Well I don't know about that," Percy muttered sheepishly, "I was absolutely horrible at the bow and arrow station, but I mean I was alright at some of the others."

Haymitch narrowed his eyes while looking between Katniss and Percy, "Don't sell yourself short," he said simply.

"Well… enough about that," Effie waved dismissively, "we'll find out tomorrow night."

Percy was grateful for her interruption, and took that opportunity to change the subject, "Why don't the waiters and maids talk?" he actually was curious about this, as he had tried to start up a conversation with one once, but she avoided his eyes and hurried out of sight.

"They aren't _waiters and maids_ , they're servants, avoxes," Effie's voice was clipped, "And they don't talk because they can't."

"Do they like get fired if they talk?" Percy asked.

"They _can't_ talk," she stated again, "Their tongues were cut out."

"Oh wow that's… that's _terrible,"_ he was horrified and disgusted.

Effie waved her hand dismissively, "It's punishment for crimes against the capitol. Treason is a serious crime," she explained.

"Attacking a peacekeeper, escaping the districts, parents trying to protect their children from dying a horrible death," Haymitch started listing. "Essentially anything the capitol deems to be a nuisance. Wouldn't want the districts being too," Haymitch paused before his next word, "rebellious… now would we?"

Effie cleared her throat and gave a fake laugh, "I thought we were supposed to be eating."

Awkward silence followed for the rest of dinner. Katniss was the first to leave saying she was tired and wanted to go to bed early. Percy thought of following her, but decided not to make matters worse.

"You should get a good night's sleep too, can't afford to make sleep induced mistakes tomorrow," Haymitch warned him.

"Yeah, yeah your probably right," Percy said yawning, suddenly struggling to keep his eyes open.

He lumbered back to his room and immediately crashed on the bed, but that turned out to be a colossal mistake.

He was in a snowy forest surrounded by tents and fire pits with people gathered around talking and laughing while white hunting wolves roamed between their feet looking for scraps. It took Percy a second to realize that they were all girls, most between the ages of twelve and twenty. His view focused on a tent slightly more regal looking than the others. His feet carried him against his will towards the tent. He stepped inside to see a girl knelt in front of something. The girl had black hair, electric blue eyes, and pale skin. She was wearing a strange outfit complete with combat boots, a silver tiara, and a death to Barbie t-shirt. Percy couldn't see whom she was kneeling in front of.

"…But, my lady, if what you say is true then we need him now more than ever." The black haired girl spoke to the still unknown person.

"Nonsense, this can be done without him. _There's a lot of capable women… like that Reyna girl… or maybe the dead girl." Percy could finally see that the voice belonged to what looked like a hologram of a girl. "Ow, my head is aching. I fear our conversation has been intruded upon." A distant rumbling could be heard in the sky, "That's father. I have to go. He's been crankier than usual." More thunder boomed. Just then the hologram disconnected, and his dream changed to an abandoned house. Actually, it's more like the ruins of a mansion surrounded by woods. There was a cage in a section of the room with a lady in white robes locked in it. Percy recognized her from his dream last night.

"Oh great, my favorite hero," she said sarcastically rolling her eyes, "here to mock me?"

"You can see me?" Percy asked incredulously.

She rolled her eyes, "You never were too bright, were you?" she mocked.

"Says the one locked in a cage," Percy fired back.

Her eyes blazed with anger, "Do not test me _child_ , or I'll leave you stranded in those desolate times forever."

A growl came from the shadows, "Well it looks like our prisoner has found a cell mate." A tall man with fiery red eyes and greasy dark hair stepped forward and growled causing two wolves to take either side of Percy. When he saw Percy's face recognition shone in his eyes. "What a surprise! The hero of Olympus graces us with his presence! They said you were gone. Do you expect me to bow to you?" The wolves had backed Percy up against the cage. "I'm the king of Arcadia and the first lycanthrope! What are you compared to me?" the man sneered.

"Ummm… confused?" Percy answered.

The man growled clearly not liking his answer, "You're just a puny little half blood. My master has big plans for you, but I think she'd be just as happy if I turned you into a chew toy instead."

Just as the wolves were about to pounce Percy heard a familiar voice calling his name. He woke with a start as Effie was pounding on his door. "Up up up, we have a big big day ahead of us."

Percy groaned and flopped back into his pillow. "Why is every day a big big day," he grumbled.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 12

Katniss Pov

This was it. The last day to improve her chances of winning before the interviews. The morning would start the same way as the last two, heading to the training center for some last minute practice before the tributes get judged and scored by the game makers. A bad score is usually the difference between life and death, because the highest scores are almost always the most likely to get sponsors. Katniss hardly slept last night, and was at breakfast before anyone else. She knew she should eat something, but she was too nervous. After about a half hour of contemplating what she should do, Effie walked into the room.

"Oh…" Effie said in shock, "Your up early."

Katniss only nodded in response. "Getting the pre evaluation jitters?" Effie asked. Katniss nodded again. "I don't blame you, your entire life is on the line this afternoon," Effie said cheerfully. Katniss really wasn't liking Effie at the moment.

"So why are you up this early?" Katniss questioned.

"Oh I like to start the day early, and if I wasn't up then I don't think either of you three would ever leave you bedroom." Effie said.

"Three?" Katniss asked thinking there were only two tributes.

"Haymitch included," Katniss smirked at that. Effie left to wake the boys.

Soon enough the two boys were entering the kitchen. Percy immediately began filling up his plate. If he was nervous he showed no signs of it. Haymitch on the other hand simply sat drinking a black coffee. He stared at Katniss and smirked, "I didn't take you for the nervous kind."

"Yeah well it's not every day you get to showcase your ability to murder people for prizes," Katniss almost hissed.

Haymitch simply shrugged, "Fair enough." He turned to look at Percy "And how 'bout you? How are you feeling today?"

Percy looked up with an oblivious look on his face, "mphff," He tried to speak with food in his mouth.

Haymitch grinned and raised his coffee in a mock toast, "Couldn't have said it better myself."

Soon it was time to leave, so Effie wished us good luck on our way to the elevator. As we were getting inside it Haymitch said, "Katniss remember you have about two hours to train this morning before the judgment. Those skills I told you not to show other tributes? This would be the time to use them." Katniss simply nodded in response.

We got down to the training center and noticed a lot of tributes were already at stations. I guess there wasn't enough time for a meeting today. The mood was tense and nervous. Even the career tributes were a little on edge. The only person that seemed perfectly normal was Percy. "How can you be so calm right now?" Katniss hissed, annoyed at Percy's calm composure.

He shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know, I just don't really care what some guy I don't even know thinks about me."

"But this is the difference between your life and death in the games." Katniss insisted.

"No," Percy shook his head. "The difference between _my_ life and death in the games… is me," he sounded so confident it made Katniss almost believe him. "Besides, like I said, I've already decided that you're going to win because you need to make it back to your family."

That ended the discussion because Katniss had no idea how to respond. She couldn't figure out the angle he was playing. Maybe he was trying to mess with her head so she would get a bad score, or hesitate to kill him in the games. She decided not to think about it right now, because the strange capitol bows were hard enough to get used to without her head elsewhere.

She lined up her shot and Percy tapped her on the shoulder, "I should get a little bit of a warm up in before later. Meet me at lunch?" Katniss gave him a nod without looking at him. She fired a shot that was just half and inch from dead center. She cursed to herself disappointed she still hadn't gotten the capitol bow down yet.

"Wow… that shot was just… brutal," Percy said sarcastically. "You better not show that to the game makers later." he warned.

Katniss gave him a glare, but he simply grinned back, "Aren't you supposed to be leaving?"

"Right right, I'm leaving," he held his hands up in surrender and walked away.

Percy pov

After lunch the tributes were all piled into a plain grey waiting room with rows of benches, so they could be called into the games one by one to be evaluated. Nobody was talking. Some looked like they were lost in thought trying to figure out how best to impress the game makers, while others were downright shaking in fear. Percy decided to take a nap to pass the time and laid down on a bench next to Katniss.

He regretted that decision almost instantly, as his dream took him to a dark, eerie, passageway. The stale air told him he was underground. He could hear strange noises coming from somewhere in the darkness in front of him. Percy tried to turn back but a wall had suddenly appeared behind him. "I'm not going down that creepy pathway, so forget it." Percy told the wall out loud, partly to keep himself calm, but also because it felt like whatever tunnel he was in had a mind of its own.

The wall didn't like that answer so it started moving Percy forward against him will. He could hear a quiet thumping sound somewhere in front of him. It sounded strangely regular. The closer Percy got the louder the noise became until it was almost deafening.

Percy shot up eyes, wide open, chest heaving. He startled Katniss. "Are you okay?" she asked concerned.

Percy sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Yeah I'm fine just… a bad dream."

"You were talking in your sleep," Katniss said. "Something about a tunnel?"

Percy looked around noticing most of the tributes were gone. Only the two tributes from district eleven and themselves were left. "How long was I out?" Percy asked.

"I don't know maybe an hour." Katniss said, "we'll be up soon." She sounded slightly nervous though she did a good job of hiding it.

"You'll do fine. I saw you with that bow today." Percy reassured her.

Pretty soon both tributes from eleven had gone and Percy was being called through the door. The first thing he noticed as he entered the room was the table of food in the game makers' booth. "Um… hi?" Percy started unsure as to whether he was supposed to introduce himself. "I'm Perseus Jackson. District twelve." Only a few of the game makers in the booth were actually paying him any attention.

Percy looked around trying to decide what to do. He picked up the sword and a sheath he used yesterday, strapped a couple knives to him as well, and picked up a javelin.

Armed to the teeth he headed towards an obstacle course that was slightly different then the one he had used previously. It had a giant scoreboard at the end, a start button at the beginning, and looked to be about five hundred yards in total. He pressed the button and suddenly the scoreboard started counting. He sprinted towards a twelve foot wall that was about forty or so yards away. Halfway there a pop up archer appeared on top. Instinctively Percy hurled his javelin at it. The javelin impaled the dummy in the neck, while Percy didn't even break stride. There was a rope and footholds on the side of the wall, but Percy simply jumped up and grabbed the ledge. He hauled himself up as quickly as possible and made a split second decision to leave the javelin. He leaped down, tucking and rolling. As he landed a dummy popped up in front of him. He pulled his sword out as quickly as possible and stabbed it through the bottom of its head. He tore the sword out and kept moving. Suddenly the floor in front of him opened up into a fifteen-foot gap. He leapt across without even thinking and moved on. About a dozen dummies popped up in front of him with full armor on. He hacked through weak points in their armor faster than the human eye could follow leaving behind piles of fake body parts. The last part of the obstacle course was a two hundred foot gap with a catwalk suspended twenty feet above it. The only way onto it was with a rope. He grabbed the rope and climbed as fast as he could; his feet dangling freely below him. He got to the top and sprinted across the catwalk. A dummy holding a bow and arrow was waiting at the end of the catwalk. He took out a knife and threw it at the dummy catching it in the shoulder. He cursed to himself and took out the other. This time he took better care to aim and hit it in the face. He hadn't noticed, but the catwalk didn't extend all the way across the gap. A rope was hanging over the last thirty feet. He jumped using his momentum to carry him across the gap, landing safely across the finish line. He looked up at the scoreboard that was now blinking rapidly. One minute and thirteen seconds with a score that read one hundred and six. He didn't know how the score was counted. The time wasn't too bad, but he thought he could've been better, especially on the catwalk. He looked toward the balcony slightly winded. He had the game makers attention now. He gave them a cocky smile, "P-E-R-S-E-U-S" he pronounced every letter, "your welcome." He put his sword back on the rack and left through the exit.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 13

Percy pov

Percy took the elevator back up to the twelfth floor. When the elevator doors opened Effie, Haymitch, and Danica immediately ambushed him, while Cinna stayed back a little bit. All three of them started asking questions all at once; "What did you do?", "what were the game makers' reaction?", "Did you embarrass me?" (That last one was Effie.)

"Woah woah woah, I have no idea how I did," Percy said trying to fend off the pack of hungry wolves. "I guess we'll just wait till later tonight."

"What did you do during your evaluation?" Haymitch pressed not satisfied with Percy's answer.

"I did some sort of obstacle course," Percy answered.

"Did you make it all the way to the end?' Haymitch asked. Percy just gave him a look in response.

"Hey that's always the first step, you'd be surprised how many tributes fail." Haymitch said, "what was your final score?"

"One-oh-six." Percy answered.

"What?" Haymitch sounded confused, "that's not possible."

"Why not?" Percy asked.

"The score only go's up to one hundred." Haymitch said still sounding confused.

"Weird…" Percy pondered what Haymitch said for a second before saying brightly, "Oh Well! What's done is done. Where's dinner I'm starving."

"It won't be served until Katniss returns," Effie answered.

Just then the elevator dinged and the door opened revealing a rather frustrated Katniss. "What happened to you sweetheart?" Haymitch asked.

"I…nothing," Katniss lied terribly.

"You're a really bad liar," Percy smirked, "your voice goes up an octave and your left ear wiggles a bit."

Katniss blushed giving Percy a glare. "Katniss if something's wrong you should tell us," Cinna said with concern.

"It's just I might have kinda sorta… shot an arrow at the game makers? Ok?" Katniss said with uncertainty.

"There are many words to describe what you just said," Haymitch said, "but _ok_ is not one I'd use."

"What words would _you_ use," Katniss glared.

"Horrifying, barbaric, heinous," Effie started listing off before Percy could stop her. "Thanks Effie the human thesaurus. But I think that's quite enough," Haymitch said.

Effie gave Haymitch a murderous look that he simply shrugged off.

Percy couldn't help himself, and started laughing, "You might just be the craziest girl I've ever met," everybody started laughing easing the tension in the room.

"Come on we can't change it now," Cinna said beckoning everyone into the dining room, "let's just eat and see what happens."

Katniss pov

Katniss was thankful to Percy for being _Percy_. He just found a way to ease the tension out of every situation. All the attention was only making her get angry again, and she was dangerously close to wringing Effie's neck. Katniss just couldn't help herself. Those stupid game makers were more obsessed with their stupid pig then doing their job. She felt guilty though too. She made a promise to win the games and make it back to her family. How could she say she was keeping that promise when she purposefully angered the game makers?

Katniss didn't have much of an appetite, for she was feeling too guilty to eat thinking of Gale's and her own families. Katniss pushed her spoon around in the lamb stew making vegetables and lamb float aimlessly. She briefly wondered what would happen if she didn't make it out of the games. How long would Prim and her mom survive? Surely Gale couldn't feed his own family as well as Katniss's for too long by himself? She pushed the thoughts from her head. She couldn't dwell on that right now.

After dinner everyone gather in the entertainment room to watch the scores. Suddenly the symbol of the capitol showed on screen and the anthem blared. After a couple seconds a table almost like a news anchor table appeared with Claudius Templesmith and Caesar Flickerman greeting the audience. A few jokes were shared and some analysis on first appearances was given. She was too nervous to pay attention, but she caught a comment about the stark contrast between the two personalities of the tributes from district twelve. "Now I'm sure you're all _dying_ to hear the scores, Caesar began.

"As are we," Claudias chipped in. "…But remember to tune in after for initial reactions. Now without further ado let's see them." Caesar said with excitement. The anthem began playing in the background again

A picture with each tribute's face would appear on screen for a few seconds before a big silver number would appear underneath that was boomed out live by Claudias Templesmith. No surprise the career kids all got high scores. Marvel got a nine, Glimmer got an eight, and Clove and Cato both got a ten. The male tribute from three, Alton, got a five. The female tribute from three, Fate, got a six. The male tribute form district four got a four and the female got an eight. This continued on for a while with most tributes getting low scores. Katniss saw the district eleven male, Thresh, got a ten, and was happily surprised when she saw the little girl, Rue, got a seven. Not a bad score, especially for someone so young. Finally she saw Percy's face appear on the screen giving the viewers a lop sided grin. Finally a number appeared on screen. A twelve? Have they ever even given a twelve? Apparently Katniss wasn't the only one shocked, because even Claudias was hesitant to read the number. No one in the room was quite sure what to do. Suddenly Katniss's own stoic expression appeared on screen. After a couple seconds an eleven appeared. This time Claudias didn't hesitate. Haymitch shut the T.V off and the room was silent. Suddenly Percy clapped Katniss on the shoulder. She looked up and saw him smiling over her. "Way to go "girl on fire"."

Suddenly the tension was broken and everyone had gone berserk. Effie was giddy from excitement form having the highest scoring duo in Hunger Games history. "Oh this is wonderful! Katniss! Percy! Congratulations. This is absolutely fantastic! I knew all the suffering I'd gone through would finally pay off!"

Katniss saw Danica give Percy a hug and he started blushing. Katniss didn't know why it annoyed her. Cinna came over to her.

"See, looks like I won't be the only one betting on you." Cinna gave her a warm smile and held his arms out.

Katniss couldn't help but laugh and hug him back. "I don't know how I got that." She said.

Cinna held her out and looked at her. "You got fire Katniss, anyone can see that, literally and figuratively."

"First twelve ever," Haymitch said still shocked, "This calls for a drink."

"Like you needed a reason," Percy joked.

Maybe not, but you do," He handed everyone glasses of Champaign.

"To maybe _not_ dying a horrible death in the arena," Haymitch said. Everyone raised their glass and drank.

The rest of the night was spent celebrating. Katniss had a few more glasses but began to feel a little flushed and dizzy so she decided to stop. A few hours later she decided to head back to her room. After all, she shouldn't be celebrating before the games had even begun. Now that Percy and herself were the two highest scoring tributes in the game, she knew the careers had placed a big target on their backs. She got ready for bed knowing she had another long day tomorrow.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I don't own either book series.**

Chapter 14

Katniss pov

"Up up up," Effie was making her rounds on everyone's' doors, "This is a big big day!" Katniss rolled her eyes and headed towards the bathroom to shower and get ready for the day. She sat down at breakfast, and as usual Haymitch and Percy were nowhere to be seen.

Katniss had already finished her breakfast of eggs, bacon, a roll, and some hot chocolate before Percy showed up. A few minutes later Haymitch followed. Percy loaded his plate up, while Haymitch simply buttered a piece of toast.

He took a minute to eat his toast before addressing Katniss and Percy. He leaned back on his chair, "As you know tomorrow is the interviews, so we only have one day prepare you." Haymitch said "You will need to know how to talk properly, how to walk properly, define a personality, every little detail down to how many times you blink per minute is important." Haymitch emphasized, "Now Effie and I decided that because the two of you will most likely have two different interview approaches we should train you separately, as not to confuse you." Effie nodded along in agreement. It was a little disconcerting to see Haymitch and Effie on the same page.

"Now… I'll start the day by working with Percy on stage personality and preparation for questioning." Haymitch said.

"And I'll start the day working with Katniss on proper manners, interactions, and presence," Effie followed.

"Then we'll take a lunch break and switch tributes."

Katniss and Percy nodded along. It made sense. It would be easier to concentrate on your own interview if you were taught separately. Katniss followed Effie into another room to begin preparation. Not even five minutes into the session, and Katniss was ready to stab Effie. Apparently Katniss had never learned how to walk, and for the past sixteen years she'd been doing some hideous animal-mating dance. At least, that's how Effie phrased it. A few hours later and Katniss had finally learned how to do all the things she thought she learned when she was a child. She was taught how to walk, especially in heels, how to sit, good posture, smiling, and talking. The smiling part was definitely difficult for both of them. "Oh that's horrendous! It's looks like you stubbed your toe and are grimacing in pain!" "Wow that smile wasn't half bad! Now only the _children_ will scream and cry in panic!" They eventually gave up on the smile, "Hopefully Haymitch won't have you smile in your interview approach," Effie said, "for all our sakes."

Finally they took a break for lunch. It seemed as though Percy and Haymitch had a much better time in their session. They came to the room laughing at an inside joke and wondering what was for lunch. Katniss had some lamb stew, chicken, and bread. Halfway through the meal Haymitch spoke to Effie, "so how'd she do?"

"Well, I've seen worse, but not much worse." They spoke about Katniss like she wasn't there.

"Yeah I figured she wouldn't be good with the whole _manners_ thing." Haymitch said.

"What about Percy?" Effie questioned.

Haymitch turned to Percy, "I think we found a suitable personality for tomorrow, he's a good improviser." Katniss rolled her eyes. Of course he'd be good at the interviews, why wouldn't he be.

Not for the first time Katniss wondered if there was something Percy wasn't telling them. Katniss had come up with her own theories ranging from the very unlikely; the orphanage Percy was raised in was a new secret training facility training kids to become future victors, to the highly improbably; Percy is a mutt sent from the capitol to spice the games up this year. Of course there was also the possibility that he was just a kid from the seam that just so happened to have an abundance of natural talent. That somehow seemed like the least likely option.

After lunch Katniss followed Haymitch to go over her personal interview approach. This was almost as bad if not worse than her earlier session with Effie. Haymitch tried to match her to various personalities ranging from cocky, funny, sexy, shy, mysterious, and even more. They soon figured out that Katniss had no acting capabilities whatsoever. "I know this may come as a bit of a shock, but surprisingly the Capitol doesn't fall in love with the zombie robot impersonating a human angle your trying to play," Haymitch said sarcastically.

He sat there for quite some time staring at Katniss thinking intently. Suddenly he snapped his finger, "I got it!" he exclaimed. "So clearly faking it is _not_ going to work for you, so we need something that really connects to you, so you don't have to try so hard." Katniss wasn't sure where he was going with this.

"What's your story, you didn't just get picked from a bowl, you volunteered, and you volunteered to save a certain individual, your sister." Haymitch was on a roll now; "You cared so deeply for your sister that you were willing to give up your own life to save hers. I think everyone in the capitol was moved by that moment. In fact it's still causing a lot of buzz. That was the one moment everyone felt truly moved by what you did. No gimmicks, no fancy dress, just one girl's love for her sister. They sympathize with that. They want you to make it back to your sister. That's the angle we're going to play."

"Except that's not an angle, and that's not for the capitol either," Katniss said hotly, offended that he would try to use her sister as a gimmick to win over the capitol.

"It's the only one that will work because it's _real_." Haymitch insisted.

"I won't do it, no matter what you think," Katniss was getting angry.

"Then you'll _die_ , because sweetheart your about as charming as a dead slug." Haymitch was also getting frustrated now.

"I'd rather die then become some pitied little girl for the capitol," Katniss hissed.

"Fine, your funeral sweetheart," Haymitch said.


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer; I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 15

Katniss pov

Katniss left the room and slammed the door behind her. She went back to her room, and grabbed the first thing she could get her hands on. It happened to be a vase. She threw it at the holographic window that was currently displaying a sunset over a pacific island, and it shattered causing the hologram to shut off. The warm orange bathed room suddenly turned dark and cold. She sat on her bed thinking about Prim. She was conflicted about what was worse; letting this horrible city into her personal relationship with her sister to be used as drama and entertainment, or failing her sister by not yielding to the capitol. After thinking about it for a while she knew she had no choice because her family was counting on her. She had to do whatever it took to win, no matter how terrible it seemed.

She heard a soft knock on her door, "Katniss?" a voice belonging to Percy asked, "do you want to talk?"

Katniss sighed almost wanting to say no, but she didn't want to shut everyone out. She had to win for Prim. She needed to start accepting help, because she realized she couldn't do this on her own. She got up from her bed and opened the door to her room. Percy was waiting outside. They stared at each other, "can I come in?" Percy asked hesitantly.

"Oh.. Yeah sure," Katniss replied awkwardly.

Percy looked around the dark room, and Katniss followed his gaze towards the damaged screen and shards of glass on the floor. "I'm not a fan of the décor here either," Percy said grinning,

Katniss couldn't help but smile, "It just can't compete with the houses we have back home."

"Oh I couldn't agree more," Percy said, "call me crazy but there's nothing like going home to a colorless wooden shack that can barely stay up."

Katniss looked at him and they shared a laugh. "So what happened this afternoon?" Percy asked, "Haymitch came into my session and started ranting about dead slugs. Then I heard a crash." Percy nodded to the vase.

"He's trying to use me volunteering for my sister as a way to gain pity from the capitol." Katniss said disgustedly. "I don't _want_ their pity. _They_ are the reason I'm here in the first place."

Percy nodded, "he can come off as an insensitive jerk." He made it sound like there was a but coming. Sure enough Katniss was right, "but he really is trying to do everything he can to make sure you don't leave that arena by crane."

Katniss sighed hating that he was right, "it just feels wrong."

"Look, I know this might feel cheap and cowardly, but if it means seeing your family again then it's all worth it isn't it?" Katniss could feel herself on the verge of tears thinking of sweet innocent Prim. She looked at Percy and could see the concern etched in his face. His eyebrows were scrunched up in an endearing way.

Suddenly he did something unexpected. He pulled Katniss into a hug. She could feel her cheeks heat up. Suddenly all the exhaustion she hadn't noticed she'd been feeling lifted off her shoulders. "Listen, you're gonna make it back to your sister." Percy said as he pulled away, "As far as I can tell no one's got a better chance of winning than you. Haymitch really is trying to help, and he probably can if you just let him."

"What about you?" Katniss said.

"What about me?" Percy asked.

"Only one of us can make it out of the arena alive." Katniss said, "How can I have the best chance of living against the first tribute to score a twelve ever?"

"Because I keep telling you we're on the same side." Percy said.

"What if it came down to the two of us?" Katniss asked.

"Then you'll have to kill me. There's no one waiting for me back in district twelve." Percy said simply, "If you die then your death is going to impact a lot more people than yourself."

Katniss couldn't believe he was willing to be so selfless. "So you volunteered just to die… for a total stranger."

He scratched the back of his neck, "Well it sounds kinda stupid when you say it like that."

"How else is it supposed to sound?" Katniss asked incredulously.

"I don't know. Look I can't really explain it. It's just that at the moment I knew I couldn't just watch this when I could do something about it." Percy said.

"But you can't do something about it!" Katniss exclaimed. "Not without dying."

Percy was silent for a second seemingly to be deep in thought, "What if…" He shook his head.

"What?" Katniss was curious now.

"What if we don't play by the rules," Percy said.

"I don't follow. There's only one rule, kill or be killed."

"Exactly, what if we choose to not kill each other?" Percy asked.

"Then they'd just send some mutt or natural disaster to do it for us." Katniss said shaking her head.

"Think about how the capitol would react to that? The final death decided by the capitol? They won't accept that." Percy said.

"They'll have to won't they?" Katniss asked. "Besides we are getting way ahead of ourselves. Just because we got the highest training scores does not mean we are guaranteed to make it to the end. Those careers won't like us being such a threat to them. They'll be going after us early."

Percy nodded grimly before heading to out the door, "You'll be at dinner tonight right?"

Katniss sighed, "Yeah, yeah I'll be there."

"Just remember Haymitch knows what he's doing even if he's an ass about it. He's a valuable ally out there." With that Percy went back towards the living room leaving Katniss to her thoughts in the dark room.


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 16

Percy pov

Did Percy just say what he thought he said? How could two kids defy the capitol? Besides, Katniss was right, if he dwelled on it for too long he'd lose focus and be killed before he could even cross that bridge. He watched T.V on the couch while he waited for dinner. Soon enough Haymitch came in a sat down in a chair on the right of him. "I'm not one for watching T.V, but I need something to keep my mind off alcohol," Haymitch said. They were watching a countdown of the top ten least memorable hunger games finales. One showed a huge flood wiping out at least nine tributes. Apparently only one tribute, a girl names Anne Cresta, could swim. Another showed a district three tribute electrifying the entire career pack at once. Another showed a tribute simply hiding the entire time until the other tributes killed themselves off. "So how's the girl," Haymitch asked finally.

Percy looked over, "She's fine… just a little angry. You didn't have say it like that."

Haymitch rolled his eyes, "If she had any brains whatsoever she'd realize this is her only hope to become likeable."

"She does realize it, but you didn't have to come off like such a dick saying it."

Haymitch snorted, "I'm not here to be her dad. I'm here to make sure she lives, I don't have to be nice."

Percy snapped his finger and pointed at Haymitch, "and there it is."

"What?" Haymitch asked confused.

"That whole tough guy exterior you put on. You're not fooling me. You pretend to be a dick because you don't want to get too close to someone you most likely won't see ever again… alive at least. I know you care about her more than you let on." Percy said.

Haymitch was about to respond, but Effie came in and called them for dinner. Katniss came in after Percy and Haymitch. Percy couldn't help but smile when she came in. Haymitch noticed and looked at Percy, shaking his head grinning. "What an idiot," Haymitch mumbled. Percy kicked his leg under the table. If Effie or Katniss noticed then they didn't let on. Dinner was quiet, while Katniss and Haymitch refused to acknowledge each other. After a slightly awkward meal, Percy went back to his own room.

He was pacing back and forth. It was too early for him to go to bed, so he felt trapped on this floor. His ADHD was not helping. He plopped down on the side of his bed before almost immediately getting back up and pacing again. He thought of going up to the roof, but he figured that wouldn't be much better because there was nothing to do up there either. Impulsively Percy left his room. He quietly closed the door behind him, and he made his way towards the elevator.

He passed by Effie, who was too engrossed in her drama show to notice him and pressed the elevator button. As he suspected the elevator was shut off. Most likely this was to deter tributes from escaping or slitting another tribute's throat in their sleep. He reached his hands in between the small crack between the elevator doors and slowly forced them apart. He was breathing heavily and had to cover his mouth to make sure Effie couldn't hear. Unsurprisingly the elevator was all the way on ground floor. He wasn't scared of heights so he slid down the guide rail like a fire pole. The elevator doors slid closed behind him. He began his slow, controlled, descent towards the roof of the elevator. He landed on the roof with a quite thud. He opened the safety hatch and climbed in. This time he had to pull apart two doors to exit the elevator and step into the lobby. Last time he was in here it was brightly lit and full of people and cameras trying to catch a glimpse of tributes. This time however, the only light came from the huge floor to ceiling window that covered the entrance. An idea came to him. Percy could break through that window and try to escape into the night. Of course there were cars and people walking the streets nonstop, so he probably wouldn't get very far. And he couldn't just leave Katniss even if he really could escape.

That voice Percy heard in the train a few days ago came back to him, _You could do it. They'd never catch you. Forget her. Her fate does not align with yours._ The voice sent a chill down Percy's spine. "Get out of my head," Percy grumbled to himself.

Percy saw a small sign indicating a stairwell. The door was surprisingly unlocked. Percy assumed the capitol thought there would be no need to put up security measures, because the tributes wouldn't be able to go anywhere they weren't supposed to. He crept down the stairs towards a brightly lit and completely white hallway. Percy thought this was strange considering the elevator didn't have a button for this floor. He had assumed that the only room underground would be for the training center. He opened the door slowly and crept down the hallway. There was no place to hide, so if someone decided to walk this way, then he'd be trapped like a deer in headlights.

He came across a room where two men seemed to be deep in discussion. He carefully peeked inside and was shocked to find president Snow was one of them. He was able to catch a little of what they were discussing. "He beat the record, my hands were tied." The one that wasn't President Snow seemed to be saying.

"You better be right about this Crane. Hunger games are very important to keeping order in this nation. There are always ambitious people ready to take your spot as head games maker." President Snow threatened. This made the other guy pale significantly. "Yes, of course President Snow." The man identified as head games maker Seneca Crane said.

"Now, show me your plans for this year's arena." Snow said.

Percy realized they had gotten up to leave and his heart started beating fast. He bolted down the hallway towards the only other exit besides the stairs. Luckily there was no door, so he didn't have to worry about the door slamming behind him. Unluckily the room he entered had a set of stairs descending down into a circular chamber with dozens of monitors, desks, and a large table in the center. He knew any hiding spot would be visible from the top of the stairs, so he bolted towards another doorway on the far side of the room. He could hear their voices getting louder by the second. This entrance had only a curtain. He burst threw it and onto a balcony. He quickly realized this was the balcony the game makers had sat in when observing Percy yesterday. He could see an arrow stuck to the wall with an apple through it.

He heard voices in the other room.

"Strange." The game maker said.

"What?" Snow asked.

"The curtain… it moved" Crane said, "No one should be down here, and there's no air draft in here."

"You think a tribute got out?" Snow questioned curiously.

"That shouldn't be possible. The elevator's turned off and the main stairs don't lead down here from the tribute floors." Crane said sounding a little nervous.

"Your sure the elevator doesn't work?" Snow also sounded nervous.

"Yeah, no one can get in or out of it. Well… some of our mutations are strong enough to open it, but they should all be in confinement." Crane said hesitantly.

"Should be?" Snow said.

"Let me go over to my desk and get my gun." Crane chose not to answer Snow. "Sir, you should stay here just in case.

Percy cursed to himself when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. He had to think fast.

Soon enough, a gun was poking through the curtain followed by an arm and moments later a body. Seneca Crane slowly looked around the balcony to find no one there. He sighed in relief. Then he saw the arrow, and tried in vain to take it off the wall. It was too deep to budge. He turned back around and called out to the President. "Nothing there." They soon went back to discussing the arena.

Percy dropped down onto the floor below. He had been hanging onto the ledge of the balcony. When he was sure they had left he went over to the weapons wall. He took out a sword figuring he could get some more practice in. A couple hours later Percy was drenched in sweat and was ready to head back to his room. He climbed his way back onto the balcony and heaved himself up. He walked through the curtain and heard a click coming from the side. "Freeze and keep your hands where I can see them," a voice said. Percy raised his hands. "Now turn slowly so I can see your face." Percy began to turn slowly his mind racing. "Sir, we found the culprit, bringing him up now." The guard seemed to be talking over a comm. keeping his shotgun steadily trained. Percy had turned completely and was now looking the guard right in the eye. A protective mask covered his face with some sort of goggles on his forehead. Percy could see recognition in his face. "Hey! Aren't you…" Before he could finish his thought Percy pushed his gun aside and punched him in the face. He then took his head and slammed it into the wall. The guard crumbled to the floor but not before letting a shot ring out alerting anyone else who might've been searching for him down here.

Percy heard guards coming towards the steps, "Shots fired! I repeat shots fired." Percy grabbed the guard's mask and quickly put it on. He sprinted towards the steps hoping to catch them by surprise. He succeeded and swept the first guard off his feet before he could react. He then leaped at the next guard and tackled him through his midsection and kneeled over him delivering a punch to his face. The last guard took a shot at him, but Percy was able to see the path the bullet was taking. He dodged it and grabbed the last guard by his uniform. He threw him at the first guard that was starting to get back up. They knocked into each other like bowling pins. Percy heard a bang and grunted as he felt a blow to the back of his left shoulder. He couldn't feel any pain. _That_ couldn't be a good sign. He turned around and saw the guard he tackled aiming at him from the ground. He kicked his gun out of his hands and punched him in the face again. The other two guards were already getting up. He picked up the shotgun and ran for the exit stairs. He bolted through the door into the lobby, and could hear them chasing after him. Thinking quickly he shot at the glass wall separating the lobby from the street. It shattered into millions of pieces. He could hear people scream from outside. A car came to a screeching halt outside forcing the car behind it to run into its rear.

Percy didn't have time to check for injuries though because the guards would be bursting into the lobby any second. He threw his gun into the streets and ran towards the elevator and opened the doors. They were much easier to open the second time. Thankfully he never closed the safety hatch and heaved himself on top of the elevator. He heard the guards enter the lobby. They saw the broken glass and went into the street calling for backup. Percy heaved a sigh of relief and quietly closed the hatch on the elevator roof. Suddenly Percy panicked and grabbed the back of his left shoulder searching for the gun wound. He couldn't find one for some reason. He laughed to himself not quite believing what just happened. Percy climbed his way back up the elevator shaft reaching the top floor after some time. He opened the elevator back up and sneaked back to his room. He tore the mask off and hid it under his mattress. He went to his bathroom and took his shirt off looking for a wound on his shoulder. _Weird_ , he thought to himself. Maybe the guard missed and he just imagined it hitting him. He took a shower and crawled into bed having had enough action for one night.


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 17

Katniss pov

Katniss woke up to the sound of banging, and was not unusual recently. The strange part came next when she didn't hear Effie's voice. Instead it was Haymitch's voice, "Katniss? Katniss! Are you in there?" he banged on the door again louder this time, sounding worried.

"I'm up I'm up!" Katniss said slightly annoyed at having been woken up.

"Meet us in the living room in five minutes." He sounded more relaxed now.

Katniss wondered what the problem could be. She quickly showered and got dressed before opening her bedroom door to find Percy also leaving his room. "What do you think happened?" Katniss asked him.

"I don't know, but this better be important. I was planning on sleeping in today," Percy grumbled.

The two of them entered the living room to see Haymitch and Effie staring at the T.V completely engrossed. Effie didn't even acknowledge them, and she had a look of horror on her face. Haymitch saw them and nodded towards the T.V to signal for them to watch it. It seemed to be showing some sort of news channel. Katniss looked at Percy and saw him pale at the sight. A women's voice could be heard over a picture of a completely white hallway. "Four guards were attacked last night by a mysterious man at the famous Hunger Games Tribute Center around twelve o'clock last night. Not much can be confirmed at this time as far as motives or suspects, but it is believed the man left into the night after destroying the glass wall in the lobby and leaving the weapon used at the crime scene. Again the only thing police can use at this moment is the security feed at the game makers headquarters late last night. We are going to show the clip, but I warn viewers that this not suited for all audiences, as this is very graphic and disturbing."

The video feed unfroze showing a man with his hands up facing away from the security camera. Suddenly he struck out at the guard detaining him and smashed his head into the wall. The man took his mask and put it on. Footage shows him sprinting up the steps. The camera feed then switches to the next room showing three armed guards cautiously approaching a doorway. Suddenly the man enters the room. He is facing the camera, but his face is covered, so there was no possible way to recognize him. He took on all three guards at once dodging bullets while throwing punches _and_ people. He seemed to move too fast for the security camera to pick up his movements at times. He disarmed a guard and ran towards an exit before the feed cuts out. Katniss didn't know whether she should be scared or impressed. "All civilians should note this man is to be considered extremely dangerous and if anyone thinks they've seen this man they should call the number at the bottom of the screen. We have a couple specialists on the air as we speak ready to voice their opinions on the issue."

Suddenly the screen split into four boxes, each holding a different person. The lady that had been talking so far occupied the top left box. She asked different questions while the "specialists" all gave different opinions. "So why do you think he was at the tribute center last night."

"Isn't it obvious? It was just some crazed fan obsessed with the game makers and the Hunger Games." One spoke.

"Absolutely not, he seemed much too disciplined to be crazy. He was perfectly in control of his actions. Notice he didn't kill a single guard," another spoke.

"He didn't kill a single guard because they were highly trained handpicked peacekeeper operatives from district two; protecting the most valuable people in the capitol right now aside from President Snow!"

"Highly trained? He made them look like minimum wage rent-a-cops!" The third exclaimed.

"Where do you think he learned how to fight like that?" the News Anchor asked.

"I couldn't tell you, but I think it would be a waste to kill such a talent."

"Talent? What you call talent I call threat to our safety."

This went on for a while before Haymitch turned the T.V off. "In all my years, nothing like that has ever happened in this building. Anyways I just wanted to make sure you were both all right. No late night visits from the _mystery man_." Katniss thought she sense a little admiration in his voice.

Both Percy and Katniss nodded, though Percy still looked like he'd seen a ghost. She wondered what Percy knew. "Oh I could've been killed last night!" Effie exclaimed, "I don't have the health benefits for such a dangerous job." Katniss rolled her eyes at her.

"Anyways have a quick breakfast, because you'll be spending the whole day at the rebirth center." Haymitch said with mock enthusiasm. Both Percy and Katniss groaned.

The worst part of the hunger games had to be this. Her prep team plucked her eyebrows, waxed her body, and ruined her fingernails. Katniss had been trying to sharpen them for the games. "Katniss," Octavia chided shaking her head, "you haven't been taking good of your nails." Next they did her hair and makeup. After hours of prepping with only short breaks in between for lunch and dinner she was finally ready for Cinna. He entered her dressing room with what Katniss assumed was her dress. She couldn't be sure though because it was covered. He smiles warmly at her, "close your eyes."

Katniss closes her eyes and felt the silk dress slip over her body. It was heavier than she'd expected. She took Octavia and Venia's hands and they guide her into her shoes. "Can I open my eyes?" Katniss asked.

"Yes, open them." Cinna says.

Katniss opens her eyes and lets out a small gasp from shock. She was looking in a mirror, but the girl looking back at her was someone she didn't recognize. Her dress was covered in different colored gems; red, yellow, orange, and glue to make a flaming design. She literally looked like the sun. Still looking in the mirror she says softly, "thank you Cinna."

"Twirl for me," Cinna says. Katniss does so; thankful her shoes were more manageable than the ones Effie made her practice in. Her prep team squealed in delight at how beautiful she looked. Cinna dismisses them to talk with her privately. "So, now that you look the part, how do you feel?" Cinna asks. Katniss looked at him and could tell Haymitch told him about the incident yesterday.

"I feel like I'm gonna throw up." Katniss answered honestly, "I don't know what to do. No matter how many personalities I tried… I failed at all of them."

"Why don't you try being yourself?" Cinna asked genuinely.

"I can't it's not enough." Katniss said.

"It was enough to win me over." Cinna said, "and the capitol can't stop talking about you. You're strong, beautiful, caring, what's not to like?"

Katniss hugged him, "Thanks Cinna."

"Remember it's just a chat. Pretend it's me up there asking those questions. I'll be over with the rest of the stylist if you need me." Katniss nodded and they left the room to meet up with the rest of the district twelve team. Percy looked stunning in a blue suit, white shirt, light blue tie, and brown shoes. Katniss was relieved Danica decided not to use flames. It showed some independence between the district partners. His hair was as messy as usual; like his prep team didn't touch it. He also didn't seem to have much makeup on.

Percy grinned when he saw Katniss making her heart beat a little too fast. "Wow Katniss… you look… amazing," Percy said in awe.

Katniss felt herself blush. "You don't look terrible yourself."

He shifted uncomfortably in his suit, "I don't know how people wear these things. They're so constricting." He was right it did look a little tight.

Suddenly Haymitch threw an arm around both Percy and Katniss, "Don't we all just look dashing?" Katniss recoiled at the smell of alcohol on his breath.

"You're drunk," Katniss said disgustedly.

"Aren't you smart," Haymitch replied sarcastically.

Suddenly a capitol citizen with a clipboard and earpiece was rushing over to us and directing everyone where they would be sitting.

Percy shook his head at Haymitch, "just try not to embarrass us out there?"

"Me? What's that supposed to mean," Haymitch was being dragged away by Cinna and Danica. Percy and Katniss lined up last before being directed on stage to our seats. They were situated in a semi circle around the interview seats. The audience roared in applause when they saw us.

After we were seated Caesar Flickerman bounced on stage. He's a thin man with a face that looks fake from countless plastic surgeries. He's wearing his usual glittering midnight blue suit, and his hair and makeup is a powder blue this year. He always appears to have boundless energy. Caesar starts with some jokes and interacts with the crowd to get them warmed up for the interviews. "After a brief message from our sponsors we'll be back with our first interview," Caesar said. Suddenly her heart is pounding in her chest and her stomach begins to feel sick. _I am not going to throw up on stage_ she thought. She was beginning to feel pretty grateful to be second to last. She needed to steel her nerves.

When the break was finished Caesar called the first tribute onto the stage. Glimmer the female tribute from district one was dressed in a see through dress with her blond hair flowing and her eyes popping. She seemed to have some sort of contacts in to make them even more noticeable than usual. She flaunted her way into her seat. It was obvious she was going for the sexy look. Each tribute only has a three-minute window to wow the audience. Katniss gives Caesar credit, for he's excellent at making even the worst tribute interviews memorable and entertaining.

Each tribute is playing an angle though some seem more believable than others. Clove from district two is sadistic and seems to want more than anything to kill her first victim. The boy from district two, Cato, is a ruthless killing machine that has no qualms about killing the tributes he's met the last few days. The red head from five dodges around Cesar's questions leaving the Capitol citizens with little information but needing to know more. The capitol falls in love with Rue's cheeky personality. Thresh, the big kid from district eleven, is hostile and curt in his attitude and responses. This seems to fit his appearance well, and the capitol seems to love it. She can't tell if he's acting, because Katniss had seen him reject the careers when they had approached him in training.

Finally, Caesar calls Katniss to the stage. Katniss feels like her mind is disconnected from her body, as she makes her way onto the stage.

"So Katniss, I understand you're from district twelve, the coal miners." Cesar states. Katniss nods in response. "So the capitol has to be completely different am I right?"

Katniss finds her voice, "Completely different." Terrible response.

Cesar smiles and tries to carry the conversation, "so do you like it here in the capitol?"

Katniss looked to Cinna in the crowd. He pointed at his chest and nodded at her. She turned back to Cesar, "Well everyone's so nice here, especially my stylist Cinna."

"And we love him too, I mean just look at this dress!" Cesar turned to the crowd with a bewildered expression on his face. The crowd roared in approval. "I can give you a spin if you'd like?" Katniss asked.

"Please do! Please do!" Cesar said with excitement.

Katniss spun in a circle a few times as the dress engulfed her in flames.

"Don't stop!" Cesar said as the crowd went absolutely wild.

"I have to," Katniss laughed, "I'm getting dizzy."

"Probably right, don't want you ending up like your mentor!" The crowd laughs as the jumbo screen finds Haymitch. Haymitch gives a wave as the attention refocuses on the interview.

"I thought Cinna outdid himself with the opening costumes," Caesar said amazed, "this dress is even better!"

"Speaking of which, your stylist isn't the only one who outdid himself. One word; E-le-ven. Only a select handful of tributes in hunger games history have pulled that off. Only six. Of those six tributes, five ended up winning the games. In fact the last tribute to receive an eleven was Finnick Odair nearly a decade ago. (Wolf calls were heard throughout the crowd) You _must_ tell us how you did it!"

"I don't know Caesar that might be against the rules," Katniss teased.

"Oh your right," Caesar pretended to pout before becoming very serious. "So, let's travel back in time a few days to the reaping ceremony. You volunteered for your sister, can you tell us what happened in your head that day?" This was it. Katniss was fighting herself inside. Her rebellious side lost, and she decided to give into the capitol.

"Her names Prim," Katniss swallowed hard, "She's only twelve, and I love her more than anything in the world." The audience was completely silent now.

"I can't imagine how hard it was for you," Caesar said solemnly. Katniss could feel herself getting emotional now. "So what… what did she say… after the reaping."

"She uh… she told me to win." Katniss's voice catches.

"And what did you say?" Caesar asked gently.

Katniss paused for a moment steeling her nerves, "I swore I would," Katniss said with force. Caesar gives her hand a squeeze before the buzzer goes of. "And it looks like we're out of time, best of luck to Katniss Everdeen, tribute from District Twelve. The crowd roars long after Katniss is seated.


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 18

Percy's pov

This is it. He can't stop shaking his leg in his seat as he waited for Caesar to call him on stage. "And last but _definitely_ not least, Perseus Jackson of district twelve!"

Percy confidently walked on stage with a lopsided grin on his face. He slowly raised his hand high above his head to wave to the crowd giving a playful wink. They go completely wild. He turns to Caesar who'd been fanning his face playfully. They shake hands before sitting down in chairs across from each other. "My my that's quite a grip you have Perseus," Caesar said turning to the crowd and shaking his hand in pain.

"Please, my friends call me Percy," said Percy kindly.

"I'm touched you call me a friend." Caesar said putting a hand on his heart. "So Percy, you seem to have become quite the heart throb. I think you might've made Finnick jealous." Cheering and catcalls could be heard from woman all throughout the audience. A few even screamed "I love you!"

Percy laughed, "yeah my stylist Danica can really work wonders can't she."

"So modest. I love it!" Caesar said, "So now Percy I notice unlike your fellow district twelve tribute you seem to have shied away from the flames tonight. Why is that?"

"Well if I'm being honest the flames made me a little nervous at the parade." The crowd laughed, "And I like blue food so it fits."

"Oh of course, naturally," Caesar looks at the crowd incredulously while everyone laughs. "I think this is the first time a tribute has picked his clothing based on his preferred color of food."

"Speaking of firsts…" Caesar starts before Percy interrupts him.

"Hold on Caesar I actually wanted to ask you something," Percy says.

"Oh," Caesar says taken aback, "why of course ask me anything Percy."

"You _must_ me where you got your suit." Percy says. Percy actually thought the suit was way too flashy.

"My suit?" Caesar asks.

"Yes, it's been driving me wild for years. I know you wear it every time. I just love it." Percy says enthusiastically, "Isn't it fantastic?" he asks the crowd. The crowd roars in approval.

Caesar laughs, "You're gonna make me blush Percy, but unfortunately it's a secret."

"Even from me?" Percy asks, "Some friend he is," Percy tells the crowd. They are laughing hysterically. Percy is able to play them like a violin.

"Look Percy I've never done this before… but you're not every other tribute. is he ladies and gentlemen?" The audience screams their agreement. "I'm actually going to switch jackets with you."

"Really?" Percy asked excitedly as they both got up and took their jackets of.

They both made a grand gesture of switching jackets. They forgot to take size difference into account. Caesar was swimming in Percy's jacket, while Percy was trying in vain to button Caesars.

Percy looked at the crowd, "I think we made a mistake."

"I don't know what you mean, I think we've never looked better," Caesar says sarcastically. The crowd was eating this up.

They both sat down wearing each other's jackets. "Now Percy all joking aside you managed to score a seemingly impossible twelve in training. Not single person in seventy-four years beside you has achieved this. This shows what the game makers think about your chances in the games, but what do _you_ think about your chances in the games?"

"Well I mean who knows. There's a lot of talented tributes in this games. Four tributes I think scored a ten or above. That's pretty rare. Having said that… when I _win_ the games how about you put a good word in for me with your tailor"

"Wow," Caesar said in amazement to the crowd, "handsome, talented, funny, confident _and_ a sense of style? If I didn't know any better I'd think the capitol made you in a lab. I swear when you make it out of the arena I will absolutely share my tailor with you" They shared a laugh. "So as I'm sure you've heard the tribute center was broken into. Terrible thing really. An unidentified man attacked multiple guards last night. Are you afraid he might return tonight?" The crowd seemed nervous at the mention of the "unidentified man".

"Honestly? I think he should be more scared of me than him. Like you said there's only been one twelve in hunger games history." Suddenly the buzzer went off.

"And that's all for the male district twelve tribute Perseus, sorry, Percy Jackson!" The crowd gave a loud ovation as Percy and Caesar switched jackets again. Percy waved one last time and headed towards his seat. All the tributes stood up in their seats as the anthem played one last time. The camera went across the tributes from left to right showing each face on the jumbo screen. The audience gave one last ovation as the tributes exited the stage, and Caesar gave a final goodbye. When they got back to the room, Haymitch, Effie, Danica, and Cinna greeted them. Danica squealed and pulled him into a hug. "You were perfect out there Percy! Everybody loved you!" Percy felt relieved not sure if he had come across as too fake. "Oh you were both wonderful, I've never received such good reviews from district twelve tributes in all my years working here!" Effie beamed Percy decided to take that as a compliment. "You didn't blow it sweetheart." Haymitch nodded approvingly at Katniss, "I suppose I'm a better mentor than I thought.

They had a quick meal in the dining room before watching the replay. Percy thought Katniss had the best interview of any tribute. She was charming, beautiful, and touched the entire audience as well as himself when she reached the subject of her sister. He knew right then that she wasn't acting. No one was that good. When they reached his own interview he cringed at himself. He seemed so dorky, but the others assured him he was great.

Soon everyone retreated back to their rooms and Cinna and Danica left. It suddenly hit Percy like a brick that tomorrow could be his last day on Earth. The last few days had all felt like a dream. Living in the luxury and safety of the capitol while fans adored him seemed like a cruel trick. Percy couldn't sleep at the thought of going into the arena tomorrow. He got out of bed and headed towards the roof. He thought about heading back down to the training center but decided not to risk it. Security would almost definitely be beefed up after last night. He walked up the stairwell and opened the door, breathing in the fresh air. He noticed someone leaning over the railing on the other side of the roof. He headed over once he recognized who it was, "Hey," he greeted from behind.


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 19

Katniss pov

Katniss quickly whipped her head around. She had been so lost in her own thoughts that she hadn't heard anyone enter the rooftop.

"Woah sorry," Percy sounded concerned, "shouldn't have snuck up on you like that." He grinned, "Wow I really scared you there. You totally thought I was the psycho fan from last night didn't you?"

"What? No, I was just… just lost in my thoughts." Katniss said.

Percy's grin faded, "I'm guessing you had trouble sleeping too?"

Katniss turned to look back over the railing, "Yeah."

"So what exactly were you thinking about?" Percy asked.

Katniss sighed, "A lot of things… mainly about tomorrow."

"It's weird but… ever since I got here I kinda felt like these last few days in the capitol would never end." Percy said.

Katniss nodded, knowing exactly what he meant. The people in the streets were even louder than usual while music was blaring from somewhere she couldn't spot.

"We're still allies right?" Katniss asked.

"Of course, why? Did something change that?" Percy said.

Katniss was still watching the crowd, "It's just that sometimes when the games start… things changed."

"Peeta Mellark," Percy started. Katniss turned towards him surprised he mentioned the name.

"What about him?" Katniss asked.

"He visited me before we left for the capitol." Percy said.

Katniss wasn't shocked by this. She didn't know him well, but there was one very distinct memory that came to mind when she thought about him. Five years ago after her dad died, she was on the verge of giving up. Her mom was practically catatonic, and Prim was only seven years old. They had no source of income, and no one could help them. It was a rainy afternoon after another fruitless attempt to bring something home for Prim and her mother. She had felt as though she was about to pass out from exhaustion, so she rested in a heap behind the bakery. She'd suddenly heard a commotion inside. A woman was shrieking at her son over burnt bread. Suddenly a boy, Peeta, was hurrying out of the house with two burnt loafs of bread in his hand. He gave a cautious sideways glance as if to check if someone was watching him. Then he tossed the bread into Katniss's lap and hurried back inside. Katniss heard what sounded like a slap coming from inside the bakery. She was sure Peeta had done that intentionally. That was the first time anyone had shown Katniss any kindness since her father died. She took the loafs home and had a nice dinner that night. It was that day that she realized she _had_ to keep going. In school Katniss had tried to thank Peeta for that, but she had never worked up the courage.

"He said something I didn't truly understand until now," Percy said.

"What'd he say?" Katniss asked.

"He said _don't let them change you,_ " Percy quoted. Katniss shook her head still not understanding the significance.

"The capitol only wins if we bring ourselves down to their level," Percy said.

"Their level?" Katniss asked.

"They can try to hide it with as much fancy architecture, food, and clothes as they want, but deep down they're just a bunch of savages." Percy said, "They just want to prove that we're even more savage than they are."

"So?" Katniss still wasn't sure where he was going with this.

"So we _can't_ let them change us." Percy sounded exasperated, "we have to play by our own rules."

"You think you can just defy the capitol. Just like that," Katniss was getting agitated.

"Maybe. Maybe not, but I know the chances would be twice as good if you helped me," Percy said.

"Not a chance," Katniss shook her head, "just because you have a death wish doesn't mean that some of us don't want to get out of here alive!" Katniss was almost shouting now. "I don't expect you to understand because you have no family, but _I_ have people to look after."

Percy opened his mouth like he was about to say something, but he decided to close it instead. "Maybe it's better if we end this alliance now. I think

I'm too savage for the high and mighty Percy Jackson."

Katniss turned to storm off the room, but felt Percy grabbed her hand, "Wait Katniss I'm sorry…" he started before Katniss interrupted.

"Let go of me," Katniss commanded in a deadly calm voice.

She felt Percy's grip slip, and she yanked her hand away. Katniss left the roof angrily. She knew it might've been a mistake, but the way he talked about defying the capitol like he was _better_ then us angered her. And the fact that he expected her to put her own life on the line when he knew she needed to make it back to district twelve to take care of her family. _Let's see how not killing people works out for you tomorrow._ The good news was that her anger towards Percy took her mind away from worrying about the arena tomorrow. She was finally able to get to sleep.

Sooner than she would've like, Katniss heard banging on her door. Instead of the cheery voice she was usually greeted to in the morning, Effie was rather dull and emotionless, "Katniss… it's time."

 **Might be too early but I wanted to put it up.**


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: I don't own either book series.**

Chapter 20

Percy Pov

Percy was quickly ushered out of his room and up to the roof. He was still tired from a lack of sleep last night. No matter how hard he'd tried, his argument with Katniss kept him up. _I don't expect you to understand because you have no family_ she had said. That one stung. It can't be true can it? There had to be someone out there that cared about him right? He knew what the answer was supposed to be, but every time he thought about his mom he could swear he remembered a sugary sweet scent.

A ladder was waiting to pull him up to a hovercraft that would take him to the arena. He grabbed hold of it, and felt a shock course through him and his body froze. The ladder was pulled back into the hovercraft, and Percy was finally able to move again. He was locked into a seat on the side of the hovercraft with his back against the wall. It was dark and open spaced, almost like he was sitting in a cave. The only difference was the dull orange lights running along the sides of the hovercraft. He seemed to be the only tribute here; as he was sure the capitol didn't want anyone to see each other until the games started. There were no windows, so he would have no idea how far they traveled or what the terrain was like.

Suddenly he could feel the hovercraft begin to move, and his heart crawled up into his throat. Percy knew it sounded silly, but he was absolutely terrified of flying. It was completely irrational considering he was pretty sure he'd never been on a hovercraft before. Suddenly a loud thunder clap sounded outside of the hovercraft and he could feel some turbulence. Percy began to feel nauseous. A capitol scientist walked over giving him a smile, "don't worry a little turbulence has never cause a hovercraft much problem." She reassured him

"Yeah well there's a first for everything," Percy muttered.

The scientist kneeled next to him with a pill and a glass of water. "Swallow this," she stated simply.

"What is it?" Percy asked wearily.

"It's your tracker. We used to use syringes, but that barbaric practice was put to rest a few years ago."

Percy took the pill and put it in his mouth. Then he chugged the water, washing the pill down with it.

The scientist took a small flashlight out of her pocket and forced his mouth open again. She looked through his mouth to make sure he swallowed it. She then turned her flashlight off, put it in her pocket, and left him there.

Another clap of thunder was heard. He might've just been paranoid, but it sounded closer this time. Percy could feel his foot involuntarily tapping the floor. He tried to calm his nerves, but between the thunder outside and the dreaded destination he was reaching it was hopeless.

Katniss pov

Katniss was in what she assumed to be the facility underneath the arena. A pair of peacekeepers escorted her to the stockyard to wait for the launch. To her relief Cinna was waiting for her when she arrived with a box in his hands. She was glad to see a friendly face.

Avoxes brought food, and she knew she should eat, but she was too nervous. She forced herself to eat a little bread and water because you never know when or if you will get a chance to eat in the arena.

"What's in the box?" Katniss asked curiously.

"Clothes," Cinna stated simply before opening it.

Cinna handed the clothes to Katniss and she changed into them. She was wearing tawny pants, a light green shirt, a brown belt, thin socks, a black thin-hooded jacket, and boots made from soft leather with rubber soles.

"I expected some grand dress that catches on fire. Gotta say I'm a little disappointed." Katniss joked.

Cinna grinned, "every tribute is handed the same outfit. The stylists don't get a say."

They were silent for a while as they waited for Katniss to be called for the launch.

"You know…" Cinna starts after a while, "I'm not allowed to bet on the games, given my job title, but if I could… then I'd bet on you Katniss."

Katniss gives a shaky smile. She's grateful to Cinna for trying to calm her nerves. Cinna holds his arms out, and Katniss embraces him fiercely. He holds her out in front of him, "Remember when the blood bathe starts just run. Don't worry about the cornucopia. Just run, and find a source of water."

Katniss simply nods in response. Suddenly a woman is heard over a loudspeaker, "All tributes please stand over the launch pad. You will ascend into the arena in thirty seconds."

Katniss stepped onto the plate that will take her to her death. Cinna pulls her mockingjay pin out of his pocket. He pins it to her jacket and steps back, allowing the glass to rise and encase her plate. Cinna signals for her to keep her head up and appear confident, as she slowly rises towards the ceiling and eventually through the ground.

Nobody's pov

Teams of avoxes are sent to each floor of the tribute center to clean up. This building will be almost entirely barren until the seventy-fifth hunger games. A redheaded avox is sent into Percy's room to tidy everything. She vacuums the floor, cleans the bathroom, takes the dirty laundry, and makes the bed. After she finishes she decides to double check the entire room to make sure she didn't forget anything. She checks the bed and feels something under the mattress. She pulls it out with an alarmed expression on her face.

She grapples with the decision to turn it in or hide it. Ultimately she decides to hand it over to her superiors, fearing the harsh punishments if they were to find out she hid it. In only a short time, it lands on Seneca Crane's desk. He looks up at the games maker standing above him with a shocked expression on his face.

"It was found by an avox assigned to clean Perseus Jackson's room." The games maker informs him.

Seneca Crane pauses for a second to think. "Get me President Snow…" Seneca Crane says.


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer; I don't own either book series.**

Chapter 21

Nobody's pov

Plutarch Heavensbee, Seneca Crane's deputy head games maker, was currently sitting across from the avox, Rachel, that had found the peacekeeper mask in Perseus Jackson's bedroom. They were in a room made entirely of mirrors. The floor, the walls, and the ceiling were made entirely of the metal and glass reflective surface.

The avox's eyes were shifting around the room taking in the peacekeeper in the corner, the games maker she had reported to in the other corner, and her own nervous reflection. Outside of the room President Snow and Seneca Crane were carefully watching the interrogation through a two-way mirror.

"Don't look at them. Look at me," Plutarch said calmly to the avox, "I promise you no harm will come to you as long as you cooperate."

The avox's eyes refocused on Plutarch, and she nodded to display she understood.

"Why were you in Perseus Jackson's room at six thirty three this morning." Plutarch questioned.

She scribbled her response down on a piece of paper; _I was assigned to clean his room after the tributes had evacuated the tribute center._ She passed the paper to Plutarch and, he read it aloud.

"Where did you find this mask inside his room?" He pressed.

She took the piece of paper and wrote another response; _the mask was found in between the mattress and the bed frame._

Plutarch again read her response out loud, so Seneca Crane and President Snow could hear it.

"The capitol cannot know about this," President Snow said with conviction. "And neither can the districts. If word of this _incident_ got out, then we could be facing serious problems. The districts would look upon us as being too weak to control our tributes, and our own citizens would be fearful of the same accusation."

"I couldn't agree more President Snow," Crane said with a smooth calmness, "but this act cannot go unpunished. Wouldn't you agree?"

"What do you have in mind?" President Snow asked.

"An extraordinarily painful death for the male tribute from district twelve." Crane said with a sick enthusiasm.

"And how do you plan on attempting this?" President Snow asked.

"Oh I don't want to spoil the surprise, but consider it done." Crane assured. "It will be a delicate death to plan as not to arouse suspicions as to why he was killed."

President Snow nodded, "That's good. We don't want this death being traced back to the capitol."

Seneca Crane pressed a button on the table in front of him and spoke into a microphone, "Ask her why the mask was there."

Plutarch Heavensbee received the command through the wireless hearing device in his ear, "Now Rachel, in your honest opinion, why do you think that mask was hidden under Perseus Jackson's bed."

The avox, Rachel, thought for a moment before writing her answer down again; _I think he was the man that attacked the tribute center the other night and tried to hide the mask._ Plutarch paused for a split second before reading this answer. If anybody noticed they didn't show it.

Crane spoke through the microphone again, "Ok, you know what to do."

Plutarch Heavensbee smiled at the avox, "Ok. We have all we needed, so you're free to go." The avox looked like she could finally relax. Plutarch caught the peacekeeper's eye and gave a curt nod.

Plutarch Heavensbee and the other game maker left the room while the Peacekeeper unlocked her cuffs. President Snow and Seneca Crane had already left too, because they both had more pressing matters to attend to. Once her handcuffs were unlocked she turned towards the door to leave. It was a good thing she didn't turn around, for her last seconds were actually peaceful. A quiet thud sounded, and she dropped to the floor with a hole in the back of her head.

Any family she might have had before becoming an avox had already thought she had died, and any records she might have had were also previously erased. It was an easy kill. No questions would be asks, and no burial would be held. Her body would be carted off to the crematorium to be burned. Just another problem off President Snow's plate.


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: I don't own either book series.**

Chapter 22

Percy pov

Percy's head had finally risen above the ground. He partially covered his eyes with his hands, as he blinked to get adjusted to the brightness. When he finally does get adjusted to the light he sees the famous metal cornucopia in front of him. Above the cornucopia huge holographic numbers are counting down from sixty to mark the start of the seventy-fourth hunger games. He looks to his left and sees tributes lined up. Some are eyeing the cornucopia eagerly, while others are eyeing the clock nervously. He looks to his right and sees the rest of the tributes lined up in a semi circle around the cornucopia. He catches Katniss's gaze for a moment, but she quickly looks away. He feels something watching him like an animal making the hair on his neck stand up. He quickly turns his head around searching for the source of his uneasiness, but he can't find it.

He looks at the supplies that are scattered around the cornucopia. It looks as if the closer you got to cornucopia the better the supplies. Containers, thermoses, matches, a bag of apples, a tent kit and a few loafs of bread were scatter around close to the pedestals, while a little while further there were different colored backpacks. At the mouth of the cornucopia he could see large crates that he assumed were filled with various important items. Finally, inside the cornucopia he spotted racks of weapons. A single bow and arrow was laid curiously close to the mouth of the cornucopia, while a large rack of swords could be spotted further inside.

When his gaze reached the swords he smiled to himself. Haymitch had told him to run as fast as he could away from the bloodbath, but Percy was not about to leave this gold mine without his fair share of goodies.

Twenty…nineteen…eighteen, the timer was slowly winding down. Surrounding the clearing in a semi-circle around the tributes was a dense forest not unlike the one that surrounds district twelve. To the side of the cornucopia there was a large lake filled with glittering blue water. He forced his view away from it, and saw a ledge leaning out over a massive multicolored field. It was difficult to see what that field was made of from his pedestal.

He looked up at the timer impatiently. Only ten seconds left before the games would begin. He looked down at his feet and shifted into a two-point stance. Five…four…three…two…one, the horn sounded and chaos ensued. Percy bolted towards the cornucopia. Along the way he scooped up a backpack. He swung his head wildly in both directions glancing at the other tributes. A few had bolted directly into the woods, while others were fighting over the supplies scattered around the cornucopia. Not far behind him, Percy saw Cato also sprinting towards the Cornucopia. Percy turned on the jets and barreled through the mouth of the cornucopia. He knocked aside food supplies, medical crates, and various weapons racks, as he made his way towards the swords. He picked up a sword, but immediately put it back, as it was slightly too light. He tested another and found it too long. Finally, he settled on a sword that met his qualifications.

Just as he reached it another hand also grabbed the handle. Percy looked up in surprise to find Cato glaring at him. Cato lunged at Percy and head-butted him. Percy was so surprised by the act that he didn't even have time to defend himself. Their heads clanged together, and Cato stumbled back rubbing his forehead. Percy felt fine for some reason. Cato looked up slightly in shock.

Percy just raised his eyebrow at him, "dude… That's your own fault. Who the hell throws a head-butt?"

Cato shrugged his shoulders, "yeah it was spur of the moment, I honestly didn't think that one through." Suddenly a huge mass barreled through Cato. Cato was slammed into the wall and fell to the ground. Cato lay their groaning in pain. Percy turned his head in surprise at the new tribute. It was Thresh from district eleven. "Welcome to the party big guy," Percy grinned.

Thresh simply gave a slight nod in response before picking up a curved sword. Percy grabbed his sword off the rack. The two tributes simply stared at each other for a moment before Thresh sprinted towards the exit.

Percy looked over at Cato and saw he was still struggling to get to his feet.

Percy shook his head and made his way towards the exit.

He assessed the scene in front of him, so he could decide what to do next. He zeroed in on Katniss who was currently wrestling for a backpack. Suddenly Percy saw a flash in the air, and a knife impaled itself in the other tribute's back. Katniss grabbed the backpack and stared at the girl in shock. The girl coughed up blood and it splattered in Katniss's face. Percy looked for the source of the knife and saw Clove throw another in Katniss's direction. Katniss barely had time to hold the backpack in front of her face before it impaled itself in it. Katniss quickly started sprinting towards the woods as Clove chased after her preparing another knife.

Percy sprinted towards Clove and tackled her before she could get her shot off. The knife fell out of her hand and landed next to them. Percy was so angry he could barely see. He picked the knife up and held it over his head. A look of sheer terror flashed in Clove's face as she cried out for help. Percy drove the knife into her jacket. The blade was less than an inch from her neck.

Percy stood up and backed away shaking his head. "I'm not a killer." He wasn't sure if he was trying to convince her or himself.

He turned and ran towards the forest. When he got to the edge of the clearing he turned and looked back at the carnage still unfolding. The boy from district one, Marvel, violently thrusts his spear into the chest of a fallen tribute.

Percy wasn't sure if it was just in his head, but he could hear the cracking of a skull as the boy tribute from district nine pounded the head of another tribute. Percy could not even tell who it was because the face was completely unrecognizable now. He turned away because he couldn't stand it anymore. He began jogging into the forest trying to put as much distance as he could between himself and the bloodbath as possible. A half hour later he had to stop and catch his breath, so he plopped his sword and backpack down next to a tree and collapsed. While leaning against the tree he grabbed the backpack and decided to see what was in it. A basic medical kit, a sleeping bag lined with some kind of shiny material inside, a rope, a water bottle, a small iodine bottle to clean water with, a box of matches, and a small knife.

The knife was too small to be of much use in a fight. It seemed to be intended for more practical uses. The iodine was useful because he had heard that water could make you sick if it wasn't clean. The medical kit did not need any explaining. The rope could be used for a few different things. It could ensnare tributes, catch food, or make sure I don't fall out of a tree. It would be suicide to sleep on the ground, so he suspected he would need the rope a lot.

He put the materials back into his backpack and stood up. He had that feeling again… like someone was watching him. He cautiously grabbed his sword and looked around. After seemingly finding nothing he began his jog again.


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 23

Katniss pov

How long had it been? She wasn't sure, but the sun was still shining, so she assumed the first day wasn't over yet. She collapsed in a heap on the ground. Her legs could barely move, and her stomach was having a civil war. She would have thrown up, but she had nothing in her system. She had a few dry heaves before seriously regretting not eating much this morning. She was actually scared she would suffocate between her short breath and dry heaving. That would be an embarrassing way to die.

After a while Katniss was finally calm enough to sit up. She leaned against a tree trunk and held a knife loosely in her hand. She doubted she'd look intimidating if anyone were to find her.

In the distance she heard cannon shots ring out in a steady rhythm almost like a clock when it strikes on the hour. This meant that the bloodbath had ended and the game makers had made sense of the bodies. She counted the shots in her head. When the last one sounded she had gotten up to ten. That meant thirteen enemies left. Katniss felt slightly guilty that she was happy about that.

Katniss unzipped her backpack again, hoping that the contents had changed slightly. Sadly her luck had not waivered. A sleeping bag, crackers, beef strips, iodine, matches, wire, sunglasses, and an empty water bottle. It was the water bottle that annoyed her. Especially now that she needed a drink more than ever.

Katniss examined her surroundings, as she sat on the ground still recuperating. The dirt, the sunlight peaking through the leaves like blinds on a window, the birds and squirrels… it was so familiar to her. She felt like she was back home in district twelve. Katniss half expected Gale to come up behind her in a fruitless attempt to scare her. It actually made her miss the miserable place. She had nothing to fear there. Even the peacekeepers were relatively nice.

Katniss decided she couldn't stay here any longer, but had no idea where to go or what to do. She thought back to what Haymitch had told her. _Run from the bloodbath_. Check. _Find water_. Katniss looked at her water bottle with a venomous glare. She had been running all day and had yet to come across any sign of water except for the lake at the cornucopia. She shut that option down fast, because the careers would have definitely set up base there. A squirrel scampering up a tree branch caught Katniss's eye. A thought suddenly struck her mind. _The animals_ Katniss thought. All animals had to drink water, so these animals had to be living near some source of water. It was so simple. Follow the animals… find the water.

Katniss felt incredibly stupid because one of her favorite places to hunt in district twelve was the lake her dad used to take her to. There was always game there, because animals used it as a prime water source.

Katniss opened the pack of crackers and ate half of one. She put the rest back into her backpack to save for later. Still feeling a little weak, she shakily rose to her feet. She began searching the area for animal tracks like she had done so many times before. It was nice to be doing something so familiar. She could almost feel like she had control of the situation. After a few minutes of searching she was able to find a set of what she assumed were squirrel tracks. With her backpack slung over her shoulders and her knife in hand she began her search for water.

Several hours later and her confidence was beginning to shake. Katniss had lost the trail several times, and she was pretty sure the tracks she had found were from different animals. The idea of going back to the cornucopia was becoming more enticing with every passing minute. Soon enough the sun had faded, and she decided to stop where she was for the night. It would be useless to try and follow the tracks during the night, and she would only risk becoming lost. Though she suspected she might already be lost.

Katniss climbed into a tree and set her sleeping back up in a branch. There were straps on it, so she tied them to the branch, so she wouldn't fall out of the tree in the middle of the night. The Capitol's anthem blared across the arena signaling an end to the first day. A huge holographic screen visible throughout the entire arena displayed the faces and information of the fallen tributes in numerical order of the district they were hailed from.

Both tributes from district three were dead. Katniss had assumed that they wouldn't last long because they were both no older than fourteen and had gotten low scores by the judges. The male tribute from district four and the male tribute from district five both appeared in the night sky. Katniss wasn't entirely shocked by this either because the boy from four's district partner made it pretty clear he wasn't a career. The female from district six appeared next. Katniss had to look away, as this was the girl who died right in front of her while wrestling for the backpack. Rounding out the rest of the deaths were both from districts seven and eight, and the girl from district nine.

When she realized Percy wasn't dead yet she let go of a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. She'd seen Percy charge into the bloodbath without a second thought like an idiot. It had distracted her long enough to almost get her killed. She'd taken too long to reach the backpack she'd been eyeing and was met by the girl from district six. By that time the careers had gotten their hands on weapons and were on the hunt. Clove killed the girl Katniss was wrestling with and almost killed Katniss too. Luckily Katniss was able to block the knife and run for the forest. She knew Clove wouldn't want to separate herself from the rest of the careers, because like a pack of wolves they're much stronger together than separate.

Katniss had trouble getting to sleep at the thought of being spotted in her tree. Katniss knew she was getting paranoid, because at one point in the night she could swear she saw a pair of eyes looking back at her from a neighboring tree. It could've been anything though because it was too dark to see properly and a tribute would have probably attacked her already if they really did see her. Her eyes must have closed at some point because before she knew it sunlight was streaming through the leaves, and waking her up.


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer: I don't own either book series.**

Chapter 24

Percy Pov

After Percy had decided he had put enough distance between himself and the bloodbath he picked out a tree to sleep in for the night, or rather early evening. Exhaustion swept through his body like a tidal wave leaving his eyes heavy and muscles sore. He heaved himself up the branches and secured himself to the tree. He was out like a light before the Anthem had even begun to play.

Like so many times before, his dream was strange. Percy was in a forest, and he was surrounded by the biggest storm he'd ever seen. He could hear the groans of trees being ripped off the ground from powerful wind gusts, as a massive five hundred foot tidal wave obliterated the land and lightning lit up the pitch black sky. It truly seemed like the end of the world.

The strange part was that the storm seemed to be skirting around the outside of this forest. Even the wave appeared to skip over him. It was almost like he was in the eye of a hurricane. This did _not_ mean that his immediate surroundings were peaceful by any stretch. He seemed to be in the midst of some sort of battle. It was absolute chaos, as people in full body armor and armed to the teeth with weapons attacked each other. Glowing bronze against solid gold. Any battle formations that may have started had been completely abandoned as panic ensued. The main cause of panic seemed to be the army of monsters flooding into the forest.

Giant dogs the size of eighteen-wheelers would leap out of seemingly nowhere and turn a soldier into a chew toy. Giant humanoid creatures ripped soldiers apart before devouring them. Some soldiers would get a wicked look in their eyes and seemingly attack their own allies for no apparent reason.

Leaders on both sides tried to rally their troops, but mass panic had set in, as they were no longer sure who the enemy was. A giant flying two hundred foot trireme fell from the sky, as a flying pig the size of a large boulder crashed into it at full speed. The monsters let out a thunderous cheer of approval. The blonde haired girl from my previous dreams was attempting to drag an unconscious Latino boy with elfish features out of the wreckage. Two other boys, one with blonde hair, and another larger kid of Asian decent make their way out too. The blonde haired kid was carrying a brown haired girl bridal style.

The girl from the previous dreams seemed to be doing a head count. The Asian boy was searching his surroundings wildly shouting out for a girl named Hazel. "She must still be inside with Nico," The other guy states.

The larger kid immediately ran back into the, now on fire, ship to search for her, while the two blondes looked at each other. "Annebeth I'll…" he starts before the girl, Annabeth, interrupts.

"No you stay with Piper and Leo, I'll go look for Nico." She commanded. With that she followed the other boy back into the wreckage. The blonde haired boy put himself between the still unconscious bodies, Percy could only assume they were Piper and Leo, and the attacking monsters and soldiers in what appeared to be a useless attempt to protect them.

Even though there were a billion things happening around him, Percy's gaze was fixed only on the door to the ship. Suddenly a loud bang pierced Percy's eardrums as the ship exploded. The ship had been completely obliterated. There was no chance anyone left inside could have survived it.

Suddenly Percy's eyes burst open and he lets out an anguished scream, "Annabeth!" He was greeted by the silence of the night. A thousand thoughts came rushing towards his brain all at once. The world of Greek gods came flooding back into his memory, as did his moms name, Sally, his best friend, Grover, his step-brother, Tyson, and… and Annabeth, his everything.

 **Yeah, definitely a short chapter, so sorry about that.**


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series**

Chapter 25

Percy Pov

Percy head erupted in pain. He tried to stand up, but he couldn't maintain his footing. He fell from the tree and landed on his back. The impact caused his head to snap against the dirt. Percy groaned in pain and massaged the back of his head. He was sure he was hallucinating because the woman he saw in his dream a few nights ago was standing above him.

She looked slightly different than before, but it wasn't very hard to recognize her. She was seven feet tall dressed in a blue dress with a goat skin draped over her shoulders. She was holding a golden staff with a white lotus flower on top. Her face seemed colder and harsher.

"Hera," Percy grumbled as he propped himself up with his arms.

She eyed him up before saying, "pity you have that _Greek_ curse on you. A hit like that would've taken care of your memories just fine, and I wouldn't have to be here." Hera thought for a minute, "though, I suppose you also could've died, and as much as I hate to say it, I need you _not_ to die."

"Wow thanks. I'm honored, really," Percy mocks.

"I'll ignore your insolence, but even I have my limits," she warned. Percy just rolled his eyes.

"Where's Annabeth?" Percy asked dreading the answer.

"Alive." She said simply, "that's all you need to know right now." Percy felt relief flood through him.

"Then what was that vision I just had?" Percy asked.

Hera's face flashed with annoyance, " That would be Gaea playing her little tricks."

"So that didn't actually happen?" Percy hoped.

Hera thought for a second, "That's difficult to answer. It's a possibility… if you fail this quest."

"This quest? Is that what this is? A quest?" Percy asked incredulously.

"Yes," Hera snapped, "and I would've preferred to send my champion, Jason, but he was needed elsewhere. Sadly I have to rely on a Greek."

"You say that like you aren't Greek." Percy stated curiously.

"I'm not, but that's none of your concern at the moment." Hera said.

"Where am I?" Percy asked.

"The better question to ask is _when_ are you." Hera said.

"Ok," Percy rolled his eyes, " _when_ am I."

"About one hundred and fifty years into the future." Hera said.

Percy looked around and said, "really? This is… really disappointing. Where're the flying cars and hoverboards, and light sabers and stuff?"

"I'm afraid the future is pretty bleak since Gaea won the war." Hera shrugged.

"What war? I already beat Kronos, didn't I?" Percy asked.

"The prophecy your oracle foresaw last summer. We lost, so the Gods have retreated into hiding. Most of humanity was wiped out, and any influence we had has been destroyed. Even this place is all but void of power." Hera explained dejectedly.

"What's this place?" Percy asked.

"That's none of your concern," Hera snapped, "I don't have time for this. Our auras are too strong. The giants will sense our presence soon enough if they haven't already. I need to wipe your mind again, so you can continue your quest."

"Woah woah woah, pause," Percy held up his hands, " You are not wiping my mind again." He said forcefully.

"That is not your choice. It's for your own safety. Your friend Grover explained that to you. The more you know, the stronger your scent will be. Your aura is strong enough as it is."

"But Anna-" Percy never got to finish his thought before the goddess snapped her fingers and he passed out in a heap on the forest floor.

 **Sorry it's taken so long to update. I've just been pretty busy recently.**


	26. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series**

Chapter 26

Katniss pov

Pain wracked Katniss's body. The first thing she processed when she woke up was the dull ache in her stomach from not eating much yesterday. She immediately unzipped her backpack and took two strips of beef and two crackers out. This left her with only four beef strips and eight crackers left.

Katniss actually felt worse after eating then she did when she woke up. Her tongue was completely dry and her throat felt scratchy and raw. She was beginning to feel lightheaded from the relentless heat and lack of water. Katniss knew if she didn't find water, then she'd be dead soon.

Katniss heaved herself to her feet and noticed problem number three. Her legs could barely move. She wasn't used to running long distances, and she was pretty sure she must have jogged close to five miles yesterday and walked another two. She leaned down and rubbed her calves to find them rock solid. Katniss could do little more than hobble around painfully, so if she came across any danger, outrunning it would not be an option.

Katniss decided she would follow the same plan she used yesterday to find water. After searching for animal tracks she finally picked up what looked to be a squirrel's. Hours passed by and she was beginning to feel dizzy. Katniss couldn't recall hearing any cannons but she honestly didn't trust her mind anymore.

By the time the anthem began playing she had completely given up on her plan to track animals and was now wandering aimlessly.

If another tribute were to stumble across her right now, then she wouldn't be able to defend herself. Katniss was almost hoping someone _would_ find her and put her out of her misery. She had stopped trying to live for herself hours ago. The only thing that willed her to keep going was the thought of Prim watching this.

As the sun crept down into the horizon, the moon offered little comfort from the constant heat. She was barely able to heave herself into a tree, and made her bed a little lower than she would have liked.

Her suspicions were confirmed when not a single face showed in the sky. She ate another beef strip and a cracker before attempting to fall asleep. Katniss wasn't sure if she'd be able to with the aching she felt in her body, but eventually she fell into a painful and unproductive slumber.

Percy Pov

Percy had never felt fresher than he felt right now. He felt like a bear coming out of hibernation. He felt more energized then he had all week, including the four cups of coffee he had yesterday. Wait a second… why was he in the middle of a forest? Percy leaned up and looked around in shock. Was he… was he in the arena? That couldn't be right. He still had days before the games were supposed to begin. He was supposed to do weapons training with Katniss today. Katniss. The name brought a blush to his cheeks, as he thought about last night. He knew he shouldn't have, but he just couldn't stop himself. _Focus_ he told himself.

Percy looked up and saw something strange in the tree above him. He had to shield his eyes from the sun, so he couldn't make out what it was. He climbed the tree swiftly, and found a backpack, sleeping bag, and sword. He opened the backpack to find various supplies packed away. Percy got the feeling he was being watched, so he slowly turned his head from side to side. He found no one there, so he went back to examining the supplies. He found a water bottle, a small knife, a box of matches, an iodine bottle, and a medical kit.

 _Yep,_ he thought, _I'm in the arena_. He couldn't figure out how he got here. He vaguely wondered whether he slept through the training days and interview. He was a pretty advanced sleeper, so he'd pulled feats like that before. That couldn't have been the case though; because there's no way they would let him miss the interview. Unless of course, Haymitch and Effie Weekend at Bernied him.

A growl jarred him from his thoughts. He scanned the ground but couldn't find anything. That's when he finally realized Katniss wasn't with him, his reason for being here in the first place. It felt like a cold hand had closed around his throat making it hard to breath. He grabbed his supplies and sword and jumped from the tree. He landed gracefully in a tuck and roll and came up sprinting. He seemed to be following a tug in his gut that was directing him almost like a compass.

It was dark by the time he found the source of pulling in his gut. It wasn't what he had hoped for. Instead of finding Katniss he found what looked to be a stream. He was too exhausted to keep looking, so he decided to rest here for the night. He climbed a tree and set his sleeping bag up. A little while later, the anthem started playing in the sky, but no faces appeared. He must have already missed the bloodbath. A thought came to him that made his stomach turn. He wondered whether Katniss was already dead. He pushed the thought from his head. She was a fighter.

"You should be more concerned for yourself at the moment," a voice snarled from a nearby tree.

Percy whipped his head towards the sound, and he was met with a pair of burning red eyes.


	27. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer: I don't own either book series.**

Chapter 27

Percy Pov

Standing underneath his tree was a familiar looking man. He looked far too old to be a tribute, but didn't have the flashy style of the capitol. Pacing around his feat were two large wolves. "Do I know you?" Percy asked cautiously.

The mans red eyes bore into Percy's sea green ones, "I'm afraid I've never had the pleasure," he snarled, "why don't you come on down so we can be properly introduced."

Percy looked the man over before stating simply, "No, I'm good"

This answer took the man by surprise, so he laughed, "I was never told the hero of Olympus was a coward."

"Who's that?" Percy asked.

"Who's who?" the man asked back.

"The hero of Olympus," Percy clarified.

"That's… you?" The man seemed unsure of his answer.

"Yeah, you sure about that?" Percy asked.

"Well… yeah. You're Perseus Jackson right?" the man asked.  
"Uh.. yeah," Percy said.

"Well then you're the hero of Olympus," the man whose name Percy still didn't know said in an exasperated tone.

"Why am I the hero f Olympus?" Percy asked.

The stranger rolled his eyes, which looked weird since they were completely red, "honestly? Right now I'm asking myself the same question."

The man sniffed the air, "your scent. It's faint."

Percy grinned, "yeah, the showers here work wonders."

"No I mean your scent. I can barely smell your blood."

Percy gave him a concerned look, "I'm pretty sure your not supposed to smell someone's blood at all. It's actually pretty weird that you think you can do that."

"Your memories must be wiped. No doubt some insufferable goddess did this to keep me off your tail." He looked up at Percy and gave a wolf like smile, "Come down here little demigod."

"No way weirdo. You can't make me," Percy called back down.

"Can't I?" the tree suddenly started aging. A process that would've taken centuries was happening in seconds. The tree started sagging toward the ground.

Percy grabbed his bag and sword preparing to jump from the tree. Just before he could jump the branch Percy was standing on broke away causing Percy to land on his back.

The two wolves pounced on Percy. He couldn't see pack the two masses of fur and teeth on top of him. One clamped its jaws down on Percy's throat. He closed his eyes waiting for the pain, but none came. He felt the weight on top of him move, and heard whimpering like a kicked puppy. The wolves headed back to their masted and hid behind him.

The man stared in fear at Percy. "I heard the legends, but I thought it couldn't be true." Percy rose to his feet with his sword in hand. "That curse protects you for now, but you'll have to drink at some point."

Percy wasn't sure what he meant by that. "Until then though, maybe I'll just take a shot and see if it hits." The man leapt at Percy. As he flew through the air his hands turned into paws, his face elongated and his teeth grew larger and sharper. Percy's reflexes took over causing him to roll backwards. He used his legs and the man's momentum to send him flying into a tree behind him. He heard him smash into the trunk. When Percy got back to his feet and looked at the man, he was surprised to find a wolf slightly bigger than the others staring back at him. The wolf growled and jumped at Percy. Percy sidestepped and swung his sword in an upward arc into the wolf's belly. The metal cut through its body like warm butter, but the wolf simply growled in pain and landed on its feet. Percy couldn't believe it was still alive. The wolf should've been cut clean in half.

The larger wolf growled to his companions. They seemed to be communicating. They all turned and flew into the night. Percy dropped his sword and fell asleep on the spot.

Katniss pov

She was close. She had to be. She was following a large animal's tracks. If Katniss were in her right mind, then she would have realized that the tracks were human, and she was potentially walking right into a trap. It was a risk she'd be willing to take at this point anyways. She was sure she wouldn't last another day without water.

Her foot got caught in a tree branch causing her to tumble down hill. When she landed at the bottom she decided she had finally reached her limit. This was as good a spot to die as any, so she would just lie on the ground until her body simply sunk into the spongy mud. _Wait a second_ … she thought. _Where there's mud there's water_. She forced herself onto her hands and knees. She heard a sound like rushing water to her left. Using every ounce of willpower she had left she crawled towards it until the cool liquid was touching her fingers. Happy is not a strong enough word to describe the feeling she felt at this moment.

She opened her bag and took her water jug out. She filled it up and almost drank some before remembering the iodine. She put the drops in and waited. It was the most agonizing half hour of her entire life. When it was ready she drank the entire jug in one gulp. The cold liquid relieved her scratchy throat and dry mouth. After she emptied the container, she refilled it and put more iodine in. She decided to wash herself while she passed the time. The stream was only about half a foot deep, but the current was swift and strong. She took her clothes off and scrubbed herself as well as she could, enjoying the break from the constant heat.

Something made her blood run as cold as the water. A yawn coming from her right alerted her that she wasn't alone. She cursed herself, as she realized she'd stupidly left her knife in her backpack. Trying to make as little noise as possible she slowly crept towards her backpack by the edge. Unfortunately the person spotted her before she could make it. "Oh my gods, where's your clothes!" the guy exclaimed. Of course it had to Percy.

 **Sorry for the longer wait than usual.**


	28. Chapter 28

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series**

Chapter28

Percy pov

"Well don't just stand there! Get me my clothes!" Katniss shrieked pointing to a nearby branch with her clothes on it.

"Oh… right," Percy said rather stupidly. He rushed over, grabbed the clothes, and tossed them to Katniss.

Percy turned around and allowed Katniss to get dressed.

"Ok you can turn around now," Katniss, said. Percy turned to Katniss and could still see the embarrassment written on her face.

"Can I ask why you were naked in a stream like five feet from where I was sleeping? I mean it was one _very_ _brief_ kiss. Don't you think we're moving a little fast? We should probably go on an actual date first." Percy said not quite able to hide a smirk.

" _Very_ funny," the look on her face made Percy believe she actually didn't find it funny. " and I didn't know you were there. It's called taking a bath," she wrinkled her nose, "maybe you should try it some time."

"I'll have you know that the wolf man thought I smelled great," Percy said with indignation before realizing how weird that sounded.

"The wolf man?" Katniss repeated with a questioning look.

"Yeah the guy that turns into a wolf? I think he's a mutt." Percy answered.

Katniss thought for a second, "not one that I've heard of. But maybe they made a new one."

"Yeah," Percy agreed.

"It's pretty early for the capitol to get involved, but I guess they sent a mutt because no one died yesterday," Katniss reasoned.

"How many days have we been in the arena?" Percy asked.

"Three?" Katniss gave him a questioning glance.

Percy could have sworn that just yesterday he was in the training center trying to find the pizza plant. He didn't want to look stupid though so he decided to change the subject. "Can I see that knife?" Percy asked pointing to the knife in the side pocket of Katniss's backpack.

"No," Katniss said immediately. Percy stared at her for a minute before rolling his eyes and walking over to the branch that broke off from the tree he was going to sleep on yesterday. He still didn't understand how the game makers were able to manipulate the aging process of the tree last night. It looked out of place among the rest of the healthy trees surrounding it. He supposed that every tree in the arena could be fake. That would explain how they were able to age it so fast. He wondered why they would go to so much effort.

Clearing his head of the thoughts he unzipped his backpack and took his Swiss army knife out. He walked back over to Katniss and saw she had moved her knife to the ground right beside her. Her hand was resting only a couple inches away.

"So back at the reaping they tried to prick my finger so they could I.D me." Katniss nodded knowing they did this to everyone, " but it didn't work, so they just took a strand of my hair instead." Katniss nodded for him to continue again. "Last night one of the wolves that tried to attack me tried to bite my neck, but for some reason it couldn't. The wolf dude said I was cursed."

"Cursed?" Katniss asked.

"You know like the frog prince," Percy explained.

Katniss had a blank expression on her face. "You never heard of the frog prince?" Percy asked. "Doesn't matter. I think I've been cursed to never die."

Now Katniss was looking at him like an alien, "You're kidding right?"

"No I'm pretty sure I can live forever," Percy reasoned. To prove his point he took the knife he grabbed and tried to cut his palm. Just as he expected, the blade wouldn't pierce his skin.

"That could just be a dull blade," Katniss said though her voice sounded shaky almost like she was scared.

Percy was about to respond, but Katniss shushed him, "do you hear that?" she asked.

Percy stood still and listened. He was about to say no, but then he heard a soft crackling sound. It was almost like a campfire but getting louder by the second. "It almost sounds like a fire," Katniss seemed to read his mind. Percy turned to look at Katniss and saw her eyes widen in shock. A chill went down Percy's spine causing his reflexes to kick in. He couldn't see the danger, but pushed Katniss and himself out of the way regardless. An object came barreling past his left shoulder and smashed into the ground causing dirt to fly almost like a cannonball shot.

"Percy your shoulder!" Katniss exclaimed pointing to the fire that had started on his clothes.

He quickly started swatting his clothes to extinguish the fire. Percy felt a familiar tug in his gut. Suddenly the stream exploded and doused him with water. Percy felt his skin start to smoke, and he suddenly felt _exposed_. He shoved the thought from his mind because he had more pressing matters to deal with. The fire was put out, but flaming rocks were still peppering the ground all around them. "Why did that stream…" Katniss started to say forgetting the immediate danger.

"Let's save it for another time. C'mon we gotta go!" Percy grabbed her hand forcing Katniss to following him. He grabbed Katniss's backpack and his sword. He tried to grab his own backpack, but a rock smashed right through it. Percy sprinted through the forest with Katniss on his heels.

 **If you think I should pair Katniss and Percy or not tell me in the reviews.**


	29. Chapter 29

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series**

Chapter 29

Katniss pov

Katniss's eyes were watering and her lungs were burning. Between the smoke and dirt she could barely see a thing. Katniss was sure if she wasn't following Percy so closely than she would've ran into a tree by now.

She saw a boulder smash into the side of a tree. The tree cracked in half, as burning branches tumbled to the ground. She knew that if the boulders didn't stop coming soon, then the entire forest would be burned to the ground. She wasn't sure exactly why the game makers wanted to kill them so badly. Maybe it was because of the lack of deaths recently. Maybe they were still angry about the arrow she shot at them.

Katniss was so busy contemplating the reason why the capitol wanted them dead that she failed to see the flaming rock headed her way until it was too late. She tried to dodge it, but it grazed her leg. Heat flared up her body causing her to scream in agony. She tumbled to the ground grasping her leg. Percy turned around, his face etched with concern, "Oh my gods! Katniss are you alright." If She weren't in so much pain, Katniss would have found it strange that he said "gods" instead of "god". Choosing not to answer she tried to tear the cloth around the burn away. Bad move. Even slightly moving the fabric said made her gasp in pain. Percy slowly extended her leg and reached for the cloth. Realizing what he was about to do she screeched, "no! Don't!"

Percy looked up and said, "I have to. We need to see how bad it is." He didn't wait for permission and simply tore it off. Katniss yelped in pain, but felt a little relief with the fabric no longer irritating her skin. She looked at her leg and was sorry she did.

Her shin had a four inch gash running through where the rock had grazed her. It was impossible to tell how deep the cut was because she was bleeding too heavily. The cut was the least of her worries though. The skin around the cut was bright red and glossy.

"Second degree burn," Percy said as a jagged rock the size of a refrigerator crashed into the ground only a few feet away. "Can you run?'

She shakily stood up using Percy for support; "Yeah, yeah I'm fine," Katniss grimaced.

It seemed as though she wouldn't have to run though, because the boulders suddenly stopped falling to the ground. She was about to ask why when she saw a… thing walking towards them. She couldn't think of anything else to call it.

The first thing that struck her was the size. It had to be thirty feet long and ten feet tall. It couldn't be a regular animal because it had an almost human like face. It was only almost human because of the pure black eyes that seemed to burn through you, and the needle like teeth lining its mouth. Each tooth had to be the size of her forearm and as thin as a pencil. There was a lady at the hob that would speak of demons and devils and ghost stories. Katniss used to think that she either really liked scary children, or she was completely out of her mind. After seeing this thing she wasn't so sure.

Surrounding the creature's face was a mane of red hair. She heard of cats in the continent of Africa having mane's similar to this one. The body also seemed to be a nightmarish version of a cat's. The upper body seemed to ripple with muscle as it moved. The paws resembled more of a bear's paws, as it had claws almost as long as it's teeth.

They taught about the different mutt's the capitol has made in the past in her school. They ranged from birds to lizards, and even bees, but she didn't remember ever learning about this. She didn't see how even the capitol with al their resources and technology could make a creature like this, and it frankly terrified her. Katniss thought she had been scared before, but nothing could prepare her for the feeling going through her body right now. She couldn't move. She was paralyzed.

Luckily though the creature hadn't seemed to notice them yet.

"Hey you see the lion-man too, right?" Percy whispered.

Katniss could only nod in response.


	30. Chapter 30

**Disclaimer: I do not own either series**

Chapter 30

Percy pov:

They quickly ducked behind a bush with strange looking berries on it. Manticore. That was what the creature looming in front of them was. He didn't know where the name came from, but it suddenly appeared in his head.

"We should run," Percy suggested quietly.

"I can't," Katniss whispered gesturing to her leg.

"So then what should we do? Fight it?" Percy asked holding up his sword hopefully.

"Percy I'm pretty sure his teeth are the size of your sword. I don't think we can fight this thing."

"I can totally take this stupid furball in a fight," Percy said defensively. Honestly he wasn't sure he could beat this monster, but he wasn't one to back down, and he certainly wouldn't let Katniss know that. "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog!"

He felt Katniss clamp her hand over his mouth, "Quiet!" Katniss hissed, "You're going to get us killed."

" what's your plan," Percy grumbled looking at Katniss expectantly. She simply shrugged her shoulders in response.

They watched the monster from their hiding spot for a moment before the reality of the situation set in.

Katniss Pov:

Katniss and Percy looked at each other and assumed they came to the same realization. "I'll stay behind," they said in unison.

"What? Percy said shocked.

"I can't win like this," Katniss said referring to her leg, "You can still win if I can distract this thing long enough for you to escape. It's obvious the game makers intend to kill one of us. This is the smarter move. Just… just take care of my family," Katniss could feel a lump form in her throat as she came to terms with her decision. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes against her will, and she fought ferociously to hold them back.

Percy tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, "You can take care of them yourself when you make it out of this place as the victor. You're not gonna die anytime soon. That much I can promise you. Look, I told you I can kill this thing, and I meant it," he was so sure of himself that Katniss almost believed him, but then she glanced at the mutt and all of her confidence vanished again. "When I step outside of this hiding spot I need you to run. I need you run to not look back. Promise me?"

Katniss was still looking at the mutt, "you can't kill that thing," she shook her head.

Percy leaned in and she felt his lips on hers for the second time this week. She closed her eyes and kissed him back properly. Not like on the roof. His lips tasted slightly salty. He stepped back and cupped her face in his hands. "Promise me you won't come back." Percy said with a fierce intensity in his eyes. Katniss hesitated for a moment before nodding her affirmation.

Percy stepped into the clearing. The mutt regarded him with its soulless black eyes. Percy slowly circled the clearing drawing the mutt's attention to focus solely on him. It took Katniss a second to realize that she should probably start leaving. She ran through the forest as quickly as she could. She tried to listen to fight, but it was hard to concentrate on anything other than the pain in her leg. She was able to catch a few words. Mostly because the mutt was loud enough that the entire arena could probably hear it.

She could hear a deep laughter ring through the forest but she thought the pain was making her delirious because she couldn't understand how these words connected; _humans, Gaea, demi-god, Paul_. Soon enough her leg caused Katniss to block it out entirely. She stopped after a few hours to take a drink. Soon enough a cannon shot rung out. Katniss began to panic at the thought of Percy's face appearing during the anthem later tonight.

Anger coursed through her veins. At first it was directed at the capitol. For never having enough food on the table, for injuring her leg, for threatening her sister's life, for making her fight innocent kids for entertainment, and for killing Percy. The anger was swiftly replaced by guilt as she realized the capitol hadn't killed Percy… she had. As much as she wanted to blame the capitol for Percy's death, she couldn't. If she had been paying more careful attention, then she never would have been hit by that rock. They could've run from that mutt together. The rocks hadn't hit Percy. And so his death will be on her. She decided she would stay here for the night and set up camp in a tree. She had enough running.

Seneca Crane pov:

The gears were churning in his head. Endless possibilities were swirling around. He was so lost in thought that he almost forgot he was in the company of President Snow.

"Well? What does this mean," President Snow prompted.

They were staring at Perseus Jackson kissing Katniss Everdeen. "It means… we're in uncharted territory."

"This is getting out of hand, we need to kill him now. I don't care how spectacular it looks now. Every second of screen time this criminal gets is too much," President Snow said in anger.

On a separate screen they witnessed a huge crowd gathering to watch the hunger games on a jumbo screen in center city. From the looks of it the crowd was in love with the district twelve tribute. The graph in front of them confirmed what they were watching. It showed the popularity of each tribute still alive in the games. The fourth and third most popular tributes were Thresh and Cato, but it was safe to say they wouldn't catch up to the two tributes that were most popular. After the kiss, Katniss's popularity increased dramatically. She was almost as popular as Thresh and Cato combined. Head and shoulders above Katniss was Percy whose popularity seemed to rise by the minute.

"If we don't kill him now, then the capitol will be in pandemonium by the time he dies!" President Snow was almost shouting now.

"No they won't," Seneca Crane said calmly. This was the game that would make his entire career. He would go down as the best head games maker in the history of the hunger games. "People don't want a happy ending. No, they say they want a happy ending, but the first I lesson I was taught in preparation for my career was that the most powerful emotion arises from death. What people really want is a tragedy." Seneca Crane's mouth twitched into a brief smile, a brief crack in his usual stony façade. He regained his composure, but couldn't hide the joy from his voice, "This will go down as the best hunger game of the century."


	31. Chapter 31

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series**

Chapter 31

President Snow Pov:

President Snow reported to the rose garden in which he had been summoned to at one o'clock in the morning. _Summoned._ He was not supposed to be on the receiving end of that word. He was loosing control of the situation. If he didn't renegotiate the terms of this unnatural agreement soon, then he knew he would be at her mercy, and something told him she was sparing when it came to giving that out. Even worse was the fact that he was not certain as to who "she" was. The only thing that he could surmise was that she was powerful. He was not entirely sure just how powerful she was, but if this meeting didn't go as planned, then he had a feeling he would find out.

To his own irritation he happened to be a minute early. He took a moment to observe the garden. Thousands of scientifically altered roses decorated it ranging the entire color spectrum. He even had multicolored roses President Snow's personal favorite was the crisp white rose. He was famous for carrying one with him everywhere he went. The colorful sight in combination with the strong sweet smell filled President Snow with a sense of pride. Few people knew of this garden, fewer knew that he grew and tended to the flowers himself.

Tending to the flowers has always been a favorite hobby of his. His job afforded little time to keep to himself and whenever he needed to escape the tedious chores of the day he would come here and tend to the flowers. It gave him the opportunity to get lost in his own thoughts and leave the worries of Panem at the door. His granddaughter would help him when she visited. They would spend hours working on the garden and chatting about her week. No matter how grim his day had been, she could turn it into the most spectacular afternoon he could wish for.

He was taken away from his thoughts abruptly, as the temperature dropped 10 degrees. The bed of flowers in front of him began to change colors. They soon resembled the face of a beautiful woman. The flowers representing her eyes changed color constantly in a hypnotizing swirl. He never thought that would bring such fear to him. Laughter began to echo around him. "Little king, where is the courage you felt only a moment ago"

President Snow tried to respond confidently; "You will address me as an equal in this arrangement."

More laughter boomed through the garden, but the image did not move. The sweet aroma from flowers began to smell sickly. President Snow began to feel the air in the room thicken, as the toxic smell of the flowers grew stronger before suddenly stopping. "Normally I would have filled your lungs will poison as you struggle helplessly to breath in fresh air for suggesting that I am equal with a mortal. It would be a slow and painful death. Fitting for all the politicians you have poisoned for your own greedy desires. Luckily for you, you still serve a purpose to me, and I actually admire your courage."

President Snow felt it best not to respond at this time. "Is Perseus Jackson dead yet?"

"My head games maker believes that killing Perseus Jackson so quickly would not be wise." President Snow said.

"I do not care about your competition. Perseus Jackson will destroy the foundations of your country given the slightest inch. The longer he lives, the more dangerous he is to both of us," The woman said dismissively.

"If you're so powerful then why don't you just kill him yourself?" President Snow challenged, angry that the lady would belittle the hunger games. He could faintly smell the roses' sickly sweet aroma again.

"If only it was so easy, but sadly there're laws that prevent such an act." The woman said.

"So why did you summon me here at this hour." President Snow asked.

"I am warning you that if you do not kill this demigod soon, then I will send my son to do it for you. That will not bode well for you."

"You have a son?" President Snow asked because the woman had never made any mention of her family.

"I have many sons that are more than willing to kill Perseus Jackson as well as anyone else that they come across. They are not as tolerant as myself for disrespect." She paused to let her threats sink in.

"One of the mutations you placed in our arena has left him wounded and weak. He will be dead swiftly," President Snow said quickly

"Make sure of it. And don't think I forgot about my end of the deal either." President Snow nodded a yes in confirmation. "You may leave now. This meeting is over." With that the temperature rose ten degrees and the flowers changed back to their original colors. He stood examining his garden for a moment. There was no trace of the woman, but it didn't matter. His sanctuary had been tainted, and he no longer cared for the garden. He would have someone remove it in the morning.


	32. Chapter 32

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 32

Katniss pov

Katniss felt her mind begin to get impatient, as her body wrestled to stay asleep. After a hard fought battle she managed to open her eyes to see the blue sky barely visible through the branches high above her. She took the last of her food rations out and ate it. She'd have to start relying on the forest for food now, which wouldn't be too difficult beings as though she has had to do that for the past four years of her life. Of course, traps were always more Gale's style. She much preferred a bow. Even if it was the unfamiliar ones the capitol had.

She carefully climbed down from the tree, putting as little weight as possible on her left leg. Even the slightest breeze irritated the burn on her leg.

Katniss set about gathering as many materials as she could. When she had gathered enough, she began to create some basic traps. She tried to remember some of the things that the capitol instructor had taught her, but she became frustrated and decided to stick to the basic traps she already knew from Gale. They were only big enough for rabbits and other smaller animals, but she'd take anything she could get at this point.

While she worked, she kept her ears open for a canon, but the sound never came. Last night she had watched as the male tribute from district 10's face appeared in the sky during the anthem. If the district number had not appeared, then she would not have known what district he was from. That left thirteen tributes alive, and unfortunately included the entire career pack. She knew she would have to leave after tonight to find another water source, and the only one she was sure of was the lake at the cornucopia. She considered heading back to the stream she found earlier, but quickly decided against it, as she might have to cross paths with the mutt. That is if it was even still alive.

Unfortunately this inevitably led her thoughts back to Percy. He is still alive, somehow. The thought of him killing that thing seems impossible, but equally so does the thought of him outrunning it. She briefly considered that the mutt could simply be trying to make his death as painful as possible.

Katniss recalled how Buttercup would torture mice when she caught them, seemingly for her own gruesome enjoyment. Katniss had witnessed Prim's cat do some pretty messed up things when she played with her food. If these cats were anything alike… no, she didn't want to think about it any longer.

When she had finished setting her traps, Katniss decided to look for the nearest water source while waiting for them to work. She took all of her supplies with her just in case she wouldn't be able to make it back. As she searched, she tried to keep her mind off her leg, but the constant scraping against the plants on the ground was making it very difficult. As she walked she wondered why Haymitch had not helped her. Katniss knew that the capitol must have some kind of treatment for burns like these. Supplies were still cheap this early in the games. It wasn't until the final five or six tributes that sponsors became difficult to come by. This only further proved what she already knew. Haymitch had chosen Percy. She supposed it was the smarter move, and she would have probably done the same thing if she were in his position. That did little to comfort her.

She neared a clearing, and saw that she had ended up back at the cornucopia. It seemed completely deserted which was odd because the careers always set up camp here after the bloodbath. They must've gotten restless and decided to hunt the tributes down.

A rattling echo was heard vibrating through the clearing from inside of the cornucopia. Katniss hid behind a tree just outside the clearing to see if anything had happened. Suddenly a blur of red hair bolted from the mouth and ran threw the opposite side of the clearing. Katniss recognized her as the girl from district five that she had nicknamed Foxface. Katniss saw that she was holding something in her hands before she bolted back into the forest. She had probably been hiding out near the cornucopia for days stealing small supplies whenever the careers left their camp. Katniss cursed herself for not thinking of this idea herself. Then she cursed Haymitch for not thinking of the idea for her. Not for the first time, she wondered what Haymitch has actually been doing to keep her alive.

Katniss saw the lake on the other side of the clearing. She waited a moment to make sure no one else was hiding in the cornucopia before heading over there herself.

To say that she felt exposed was an understatement. Katniss could not help but think about what she would do if she came across a tribute walking through the glade if Katniss had a bow in her hand. There would definitely be one more dead tribute. Anyone stupid enough to do this probably didn't deserve to win the hunger games anyway.

She tried to will herself to go faster, but it was difficult with her burn. It was the longest walk of her life. As she passed by the cornucopia, Katniss peered inside, hoping to see the bow and arrow that had been at the entrance before the games had started. Of course, someone had taken it, so she decided to keep moving.

When Katniss reached the lake she quickly filled her thermos. She decided she would put the iodine in later, as she wanted to get away from the cornucopia as quickly as possible.

As she finally hobbled over to the forest she let go a breathe of relief. Sunset appeared to be on the way, so she decided to head back to her traps. By the time she was approaching her traps, darkness was threatening to overtake the arena.

When she reached her first trap Katniss's blood ran cold. Her trap had been dismantled by another tribute. She pulled out her knife and quickly scanned her immediate surroundings to make sure she was not about to be ambushed. Luckily no one tried to attack her, but she didn't let her guard down. She slowly crept in the direction of her closest trap. As she grew nearer voices could be heard. They weren't exactly subtle. If this was a trap, then they were failing miserably. Katniss listened closely, and could make out five different voices. This had to be the careers. Rarely did anyone align themselves with more than three allies with exception to the careers. And if there was any doubt it quickly vanished when she heard their conversation.

"Cato, you sure this is them?" A skeptical voice attached to a dark haired girl with her back turned spoke out. She must have been the district four tribute.

"Of course it's them. They were probably the only ones to spend more than ten minutes attempting to make these stupid traps during the training days," Cato sneered.

"Hey it's getting dark, we should head back to the cornucopia. We know where they are, so we can just come back and kill them in the morning," the boy from district one voiced. At this point it was evident that they were discussing Katniss and Percy.

"Absolutely not!" Cato growled with conviction. "You think our sponsors gave us these to simply wait for the morning? Of course not."

"I haven't killed someone in awhile. Besides, I have unfinished business with them anyways," Clove chipped in.

It was a silent standoff. The other three clearly wanted to head back to the cornucopia until morning, but wouldn't dare step against the two higher scoring tributes from district two. As Katniss watched the scene she noticed that they seem bulkier than normal. Their uniforms didn't seem quite right. Katniss recalled Cato's comment about the sponsors.

Suddenly the anthem started blaring across the arena, as the sky lit up with the capitol's insignia. The career tributes forgot their argument and looked to the sky together. Katniss saw the bow in the district one tributes hands. She knew this could be her only moment to get it.

She slowly crept through the trees making as little noise as possible. Thankfully, what little noise she did make was snuffed by the piercing sound of the anthem. She crouched down low directly behind her back. The grip on her knife was so tight that she her knuckles were white. Finally she sprung up and sliced her throat, or at least that's what she was hoping to do. A thin cloth was covering the district one tribute like a turtle neck. Katniss attempted to slice through it, but it was as if she were using a butter knife. The girltribute shrieked in surprise alerting the other four around her. Katniss was still wrestling with the district one tribute, attempting to force her knife through the opening between her chin and throat. Katniss was not winning, as the girl was slowly pushing the knife away from her throat. All of the careers stood momentarily stunned, as they couldn't believe someone would attempt to ambush all five of them.

Cato was the first to react. He unsheathed his sword and looked for an opening to attack. He growled in frustration, and swung his sword straight at Katniss's face. Katniss was lucky enough to see the attack happen. The other girl though... well she was pretty preoccupied with keeping Katniss's knife at bay.

Katniss let go of the knife and ducked. She could swear she felt a gust of wind where the sword missed her. Katniss heard a loud thump and a blood-curdling scream pierced through the night. Katniss looked up in shock, as she saw Cato removing his sword from the district one girl's face. Katniss caught a quick glance and nearly threw up. What was once a beautiful girl was now a horrifying sight. The girl's arms immediately flew to her face as she crumbled to the ground howling in pain. Katniss saw the bow land next to her with a thud. The night sky made it hard to tell exactly what her face looked like, but the thick copper smell in the air gave plenty of detail. For a second no one moved. The girl was now softly whimpering, as she no longer had the strength to scream.

Then Cato raised his sword above his head. Katniss had to think fast. _Them_ , as in plural… That's what they had said before. No one would be dumb enough to attack the career tributes alone. At least that's what she hoped they assumed. As loud as she could, Katniss yelled, "Percy Now!"

It did the trick. Cato and the rest of the careers immediately looked around in confusion, searching for the other district twelve tribute. Katniss used this moment to grab the bow and quiver and began sprinting away as fast as she could. It was amazing what the fear of being run through with a sword can do to the pain in your leg. As Katniss ran, she flinched as she heard a canon sound signaling that the girl had finally died. Katniss wasn't sure if she had died from the original swing, or if Cato had just finished her off.

When she finally felt safe again, Katniss stopped to catch her breath before climbing into a tree and settling down for the night. She couldn't help but grin a little as her fingers closed around the shaft of the bow.

 **Sorry this one took a little longer than usual, I've been pretty busy.**


	33. Chapter 33

**Disclaimer: I do not own either series.**

Chapter 32

Percy Pov:

He was crawling now. Every muscle in his body was screaming in agony. By all accounts he should be dead. It was by sheer willpower alone that he wasn't. The corners of his vision were fading into darkness. He was not sure where he was going, but a tug in his gut guided him like a compass.

His hands and legs robotically pulled him forward through the shrubbery and tree roots. He was just hoping that someone wouldn't find him when he passed out. Actually, that thought was becoming more and more inviting with each passing moment

He was talking slightly delirious now, "Ok Perce, ya did good. Let jus… let's just… take a little nap." Percy collapse in the middle of the forest wondering if he would ever wake up, but not too concerned if he didn't.

 _30 minutes ago_

His heart was beating fast. Faster than what was probably considered healthy. He wasn't sure whether is was because he was about to die or because he just kissed Katniss. Get your head outta the clouds man, he scolded himself. The manticore regarded him with its soulless black eyes. As far as Percy was aware, the monster either didn't know Katniss was there or simply didn't care. Percy wanted to keep it this way so he slowly started circling the beast, keeping its eyesight trained on him. Percy had spun the monster around, so it wouldn't be able to notice Katniss leaving.

"You dink your so clever?" The monster spoke in a thick accent. "If I vanted de girl, then she vould already be dead."

Percy wasn't sure whether he was more surprised that the monster could actually speak, or the accent that it used. It was nothing like anything he'd ever heard. When training along side the other tributes over the last few days he'd begun to realize that they all seemed to have distinct accents. The few times he'd heard the district eleven girl speak, Percy noticed voice seemed a little lazier and drawn out, while the district 8 tribute's voice sounded flat like his voice was being stretched out by rubber bands.

It seemed to Percy that this monster didn't consider English to be its first language. Percy would've probably found humor in this if he weren't about to die.

"I haven't had demigod flesh in centuries." The manticore continued, " I'm really going to savor tearing you to pieces."

"Demi-god?" Percy asked.

"Yes, son of the sea. You must be very important. Gaia herself sent me to kill you." The monster was slowly inching towards Percy.

"Whoa timeout whose Gina, and what does she want with me?" Percy was just trying to buy Katniss time, beings as though she could only move so fast with that burn.

"It's JEE- UH!" The monster spoke incredulously, "and you tink I have any idea? When the Eart goddess herself gives you an order, you follow!"

Earth goddess? Percy wanted to laugh in this monsters face and call him insane, but something didn't seem all that weird about a living embodiment of the Earth. And what did it call him? Son of the sea? His head was starting to seriously hurt now. His vision was spinning and he felt like he was having a migraine.

Percy suddenly said the first thing to come to his mind, "Oh. So you're her bitch then." Maybe it was the fact that he could hardly think, or maybe it was the ADHD. Looking back on it, that didn't seem like the wisest thing to say.

The lion gave a frightening roar before pouncing on Percy. Percy barely managed to leap out of the way. Before he could congratulate himself on not dying immediately a long heavy object about as thick as a tree trunk smacked Percy in the chest. The impact forced him off his feet and he slammed into a tree twenty feet away. Percy sat down hard on the dirt, and his vision blurred almost as bad as it had on the roof with Haymitch. When his eyesight re-aligned he saw the manticore slowly bearing down on him. Raised high above its body was a scorpion tail with hundreds on barbs on the end. Of course. It was like the capitol decided, "Hey let's just combine all of the scariest animals on planet Earth together just because we hate Percy Jackson."

Percy tried to find his sword but realized he lost his grip when the tail smacked him. Percy's vision started to clear and he saw a sword off to the left. Percy leaned against the tree, as he shakily rose to his feet. The manticore chuckled and bared its needle-like teeth. There was no way Percy was beating this monster in a foot race for his sword, especially after that blow he took. He'd have to find a way to keep it occupied.

When the monster was close enough to strike it raised its tail menacingly, "You have no idea how much I'm gonna enjoy dis?"

The monster whipped its tail directly at Percy's face. He ducked and the tail sunk into the tree behind him. Percy immediately sprinted towards his sword, as the manticore struggled to pull its tail out of the tree.  
"I WILL KILL YOU!" the manticore roared before slamming its shoulder into the tree causing it to fall to the ground like a twig. It pulled its tail out of the now fallen tree and turned to face Percy with a murderous look on its face.

A sane person would have seen the look on its face and immediately turned to run the other direction. Instead, Percy picked up his sword and charged the monster. As he neared it the barbed tail lashed out. Percy rolled to the side and the stinger missed by inches. As Percy sprung to his feet, he sliced his sword downwards towards the monsters tail, cutting it clean off.

The monster threw back its head and howled in pain, while the tail thrashed wildly on the ground. Percy watched as new stinger began to replace the old one where Percy had severed it. As Percy watched the tail grow in horror, he forgot about the one that was still thrashing around next to him. It caught him in the back of the thigh, and two long spikes sunk stuck in his leg. Percy tore them away, but the damaged was done. Percy could feel the venom coursing through his veins, making him numb like he had pins and needles all over his body. His sword felt much heavier in his hands

"You can't kill a monster wit steel," the manticore laughed as his tail returned to its original size.

Suddenly a blur zoomed towards Percy. He fought the affects of the poison and sliced it out of the air. Percy looked at it, and realized it was a spike from the manticore's tail. Right. Why shouldn't it be able to shoot poisonous spikes out of its tail?

Percy blocked another, but the poison was slowing him down. The manticore smacked Percy in the chest with its paw. He tried to block it, but he was too weak, so his sword was knocked away again. Not that it would be very useful in this fight anyways.

Its claws tore through what was left of his clothing that hadn't been burned. Percy's chest felt warm, and wet. It shot another spike at Percy. This time Percy had nothing to defend himself, and the spike sunk deep into his shoulder. Percy tried to pull it out, but his arms were failing him.

His head was now swimming. Percy blinked a few times to clear the spots from his eyes, but they didn't seem to be going away.

"Dis is my favorite part!" the manticore exclaimed with glee, as he got ready to deliver the final blow.

Percy could almost sense the cannons being ready to be fired. He wasn't sure whether it the poison talking or not, but an idea came to him. He was out of options, so he was desperate enough to try it. With an angry cry Percy grabbed onto the manticore mane. He began climbing up it like a rope.

The manticore was so shocked, that it didn't even try to shake Percy off. Percy reached the top of its neck and slid down onto its back.

With as much strength as Percy could muster, he pulled the stinger from his shoulder and brought it down on the manticore's back. The manticore tried to buck Percy off, but his hands sunk into the fur and gripped for dear life. Suddenly a spike impaled itself in Percy's back, then another, but Percy held on. He looked up and saw the scorpion tail looming ominously over him. The tail lashed down at Percy, and Percy allowed himself to get knocked off the monster's back. As Percy flew through the air, a loud roar echoed through the forest. Percy landed flat on his stomach. He coughed and felt a metallic taste in his mouth. He slowly raised his head, to see to manticore disintegrate with its own tail speared through its back. Soon all that remained was a large stinger.

Percy tried to stand up, but his legs and arms were barely working. He slowly brought a hand to his chest, and felt his slick chest soaked with blood. He had completely forgotten about the spikes in his back. He crawled to his sword and grabbed it. Percy felt more comfortable with a sword in his hands. Not sure where he was going anymore, so he decided to crawl towards the familiar tug in his gut.

 **Sorry if the Persian accent was bad. Also sorry if you didn't like the way I pronounced Gaia. It worked better with Gina.**


	34. Chapter 34

**Sorry for the really long waiting period I'm going to try and not let that happen again. Updates should be reoccurring more regularly now.**

Chapter 34

Katniss pov

Katniss awoke with a start, and she almost fell from her tree. Her leg brushed against a twig and she bit her palm to keep from howling in pain. She quickly checked her surroundings to make sure she was alone before examining her injury again. It looked no better than before. In fact she was pretty sure it was starting to look infected. She couldn't shake the image from her head of the night before. That girl from district one. The smell of blood in the air, the blood curdling scream, the unrecognizable grisly face that was left behind. She probably had family that would have to look at that. Katniss tried to reason that she signed up for this, and that it was her choice, but that did little to comfort her. Neither did the fact that it could have just as easily been her. She'd have to be smarter if she wanted to win the games. She couldn't just charge into the career pack without back up and a plan.

With that set aside, Katniss reached for her water jug to take a sip. She cursed herself for forgetting to use the iodine last night after filling her jug with lake water. She put the proper amount of drops in and decided to hunt for some breakfast while she waited. She collected some berries and plants from the surrounding brush while keeping clear of the nightlock innocently dispersed with the edible plants. She wondered if anyone else knew how poisonous that plant was. She had learned about it from her father. That it could essentially kill you in an instant if digested.

She decided to take some anyways to keep in her bag, so if anyone tried to steal it they'd find a little present left behind.

When Katniss made it back to camp, she was carrying a fowl along with the berries she'd found. She gathered some wood and lit them with one of her matches. She figured she'd be pretty safe from the careers beings as though they were probably resting after their failed hunting excursion last night, so she wouldn't have to worry too much about the smoke from her fire.

While waiting for her bird to cook, Katniss noticed a rustling of leaves above her head that were slightly too violent to be caused by the wind. Without looking away from her bird, Katniss's hand slowly crept towards her bow a few feet away. When she was close enough Katniss lashed out for it as quick as possible. She notched an arrow and scanned the tree directly above her for the target. A sudden _eeek_ gave the person away, and the branches started shaking. Soon the tree next to it started shaking as well. Then the next tree. They were shaking in a wave, and Katniss realized she was jumping from tree to tree like she'd seen squirrels do back in the woods in district twelve. Katniss made a split second decision to race after her, but decided not to waste any arrows until the tribute was exposed enough to get a clean shot. It was uncanny how fast this girl could race from tree to tree. She was just as fast in the trees as Katniss was on the ground. As Katiss was looking up at the tribute racing above her, she failed to notice a tree root sticking up from the group and her foot tripped over it.

Katniss cursed as she tumbled in the dirt. Her leg flared up in pain as her burn scratched against a twig. The tribute noticed and stopped as well. Katniss found this odd. It was as if she was trying to bait Katniss. If Katniss had been thinking rationally she would have figured that the girl was most likely luring her to her death, but by this point Katniss just wanted to catch this girl. When Katniss had gathered herself, she looked to the trees to see that the branches had started shaking again. Katniss kept the chase as long as she could but she started slowing down much more quickly than her prey. Luckily they had reached some part of the creek and had run out of trees. Katniss realized this before the girl and watched as she attempted and failed to keep herself from falling out of the tree and into the creek.

Katniss notched an arrow and locked onto her target. The tributes eyes widened in fear, and her voice caught in her throat. Katniss recognized who it was at the last second and redirected her arrow. It whizzed past the girls face and flew harmlessly into a tree trunk. It was the little girl, Rue from district eleven.

"Wait!" the girl found her voice again, "I know where your district partner is."

"Oh… um huh?" Katniss wasn't sure whether she heard her correctly.

"We can possibly help him if we hurry but he probably won't last much longer," the girl said cautiously.

 **Reading through comments, I've noticed that there's been some confusion as to Percy's achilles curse. It was hinted at that it was wiped away several chapters ago at the creek. The story will go further into this in depth later, but I decided to say that now to avoid confusion when reading.**


	35. Chapter 35

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson or Hunger games**

Chapter 35

Katniss pov:

Katniss slowly lowered her bow when she heard that the young district eleven tribute had found her district partner. She felt like she had to at least try and help him if she could. She definitely owed him that much. Of course she also didn't want to lay all of her cards out on the table.

"Why do you think I want to help him?" Katniss asked skeptically.

"Because you just lowered your bow when I said we could," Rue smirked.

Katniss cursed under her breath, "well… I guess you're not wrong." "Where we headed?" Katniss wondered.

Rue motioned up stream with a nod of her head, and beckoned Katniss to follow her. "Wait, we have to head back for my supplies before we leave," Katniss stated.

Rue nodded and followed. The trek back to Katniss's supplies was uneventful, but Katniss's nerves never settled. She hadn't realized how careless she had been. It was frightening to think that another tribute had been able to follow so quietly that Katniss had been completely unaware of her presence until she was directly above her head. If it had been any other tribute, Katniss was sure she would not have been quite as fortunate.

When they got back to her supplies, Katniss packed up her backpack and took a sip of water before offering some to Rue. She gratefully accepted and took a long swig. "Thanks, my water jug ran out yesterday and my backpack didn't come with a way to clean the water from the arena."

Katniss nodded and went to check on her bird, which was still cooking. It looked slightly overcooked, but Katniss wasn't about to make a fuss about it. She took it off the fire and kicked the flame out. Then she ripped a leg off and offered it to Rue while they walked. Rue's eyes got wide when she looked at the leg, and Katniss asked her what the problem was. She said that no one had ever given her a full leg to eat, even back home in district eleven.

"You have these back in district eleven?" Katniss asked.

"Yeah, they're called groosling. We always find them roaming the orchards back home. We would catch them and cook them up for lunch while working."

Katniss took a bite of the other leg, and it was actually very good. It reminded her of the turkey she would sometimes bring home back in district twelve for dinner. As they walked, Katniss asked Rue more about her life back in district eleven. She was shocked to hear how much more strict the peacekeepers were there. Whipping was always a foreign concept back in district twelve. It was something that Katniss had never actually enforced as a form of crime, even though she knew the peacekeepers could if they really wanted to. It seemed that in district eleven, whipping was done almost daily for matters as small as sneaking fruit from the orchards. Rue talked about her siblings, five to be exact, and all of them were younger than her. Katniss could never imagine having to take care of that many siblings by herself. She said that her job climbing trees back home was how she became so good at moving through the trees.

Rue asked Katniss about life back in district twelve, so Katniss explained the mines and the seam. She decided to leave out the fact that her dad died in a mining explosion. Katniss wasn't ready to talk about that. She also decided to leave out her hunting excursion's with Gale and the Hob, beings as though it was more than likely the capitol was listening to their conversation.

"That was a pretty big gamble back there, thinking that I wouldn't shoot you I mean. How were you so sure I wouldn't?" Katniss thought aloud.

"Well it wasn't entirely a gamble…" Rue drifted off uncomfortably.

Katniss looked at her with a raised eyebrow signaling for Rue to explain herself.

"I uh sort of knew the two of you were partners already." Rue said hurriedly.

"Wait, were you following us?" Katniss asked to which Rue's cheeks turned red.

"Well yes, but I swear it wasn't in like a creepy way. I know I'm small and young and I probably don't have a very likely chance of making it out of this alive, so I figured the safest place in the arena would be near you two," Rue rambled not meeting Katniss's eyes.

"Why's that?" Katniss asked.

"Well the obvious reason is because you both got the highest scores in the games… and your pin," Rue gestured to the mockingjay pin on Katniss's jacket.

"My pin?" Katniss asked.

Rue nodded before whistling a simple tune. Suddenly all around the forest mockingjays started repeating the tune like a long harmonious echo. Katniss watched on in wonder as more and more birds picked up the tune until it seemed the entire forest was humming with Rue. "Wow that's amazing," Katniss marveled.

"Back home when the sun was setting I would whistle that tune and the birds would carry it throughout the orchard to let everybody know that the day was over," Rue recalled. "So when I saw that pin with you, I knew I could trust you."

They stayed silent for a while, and Katniss kept a watchful eye on their surroundings so that they wouldn't get ambushed. It was comforting to not be alone after days by herself. Sure she hadn't been alone the entire time. There was Percy, but that had only lasted a morning. She realized now that not having an ally in this arena could drive you insane. The company keeps you human.

"He's not much further," Rue finally broke the silence.

The scenery started to become familiar to Katniss as she spotted huge rocks and smashed trees. The flames were gone, but this was definitely near where Katniss left Percy last time she saw him. Katniss noticed that Rue was clutching her arm rather fiercely. "Are you alright?" Katniss asked with concern.

"Yeah. I'll be fine, it's just when the games makers sent those rocks one caught me in the arm while I was escaping."

Katniss nodded, "yeah, one caught me in the leg."

"There!" Rue pointed to a mound of leaves and sticks on the ground. "I tried to cover him up the best I could."

Katniss ran over to the mound and shed all of the shrubbery to reveal a boy lying belly down with multiple dagger-like spikes embedded in his back.


	36. Chapter 36

**Disclaimer: I own neither book series**

Chapter 36

Katniss pov

"Percy are you conscious?" Katniss asked, hesitantly examining the ragged barbs sticking out of his back. She brushed against one with her palm, and he let out a painful groan in response. Rue silently watched from behind Katniss.

"Percy can you understand me?" Katniss asked. He offered no response. Katniss looked back over her shoulder at Rue, "We need to see his wound better, do you have a knife?"

"Um I don't have a knife," Rue said hesitantly while rummaging through her bag, "but I do have this rock that I've been using as one?"

Katniss took the rock and began tearing through his jacket with it. She attempted to be gentle, but between the fact that the rock could hardly cut through the material and she didn't know how serious it was yet she was much more forceful than intended. When she cut through the jacket, Rue helped her remove it without tearing the barbs out, and Katniss got her first hint at how bad it was. His green t-shirt was soaked in blood so dark it almost appeared black. Katniss used the rock to also cut his shirt off. The thin material was much easier than the jacket was once she started, so Katniss simply ripped the rest off.

When she saw his back, she noticed scars littered across his body. She glossed over it to get to the immediate problem. When she saw the damage she almost threw up. Her mom used to treat people back home when they were sick or when they had accidents in the mineshafts. She hated seeing them then, and she hated seeing them now. A lot of the blood had dried to his shirt, so when she ripped it off, it seemed to cause the wounds to tear open again as fresh blood seeped from them. That was the least of her worries. His back was covered like a spider web of dark green veins that seem to had bee caused by the wounds.

"Poison," Rue said immediately. "We need to take those barbs out as fast as possible."

"We can't just take them out. It could tear open the wounds again," Katniss said.

"Believe me, if we don't tear them out now, then the poison will continue to attack his body until he dies. And judging from the way his back looks, we don't have any time."

Katniss tried to think, but there were too many scenarios and possibilities running through her mind. What if she tore the spikes out and it caused him to bleed to death? What if Rue's right and the poison is actively killing him? What if taking the barbs out won't stop the poison and he dies anyway? "How would you know so much about this poison anyways?" Katniss finally asked her.

"I've had experience with poison before." Rue explained, "back home we came across tracker jacker hives all the time working in the trees."

After hesitating for half a moment longer Katniss decided she had no choice but to trust Rue's opinion. "Ok. Help me keep his body still while I take them out. The more he moves, the worse it will be for him."

Rue nodded her head and rushed to his side to keep him still. Katniss slowly took hold of the barb. She was careful not to prick herself. He groaned as soon as her fingers touched it. She carefully applied pressure to the barb until it began to exit his body. He tried to thrash feebly, but Rue kept a firm grip on him. Katniss kept pulling until the barb was completely clear. He started bleeding more heavily from the open wound.

Katniss gave a weak smile. "There. Easy right? Only one left." She reassured him.

She repeated the process with the other barb. When it was clear, Katniss immediately took the ripped shirt and applied pressure to the wounds to stop the bleeding.

"I'll be right back," Rue said while rushing to grab her backpack and leave.

"Where are you going?" Katniss called as she left.

Rue didn't respond. She disappeared into the woods, leaving Katniss alone with Percy. Katniss didn't know if she would return, but she had no choice but to wait and find out. She had no idea what to do with this tribute now that she actually thought about it. Would he even be able to heal for the rest of the games? Would it be better for both district twelve tributes if Katniss simply killed him now? Why had she really done this? It was his choice to stay back and fight the mutt. Only one of them can make it out of the games anyway. No one would blame Katniss for not going back for him.

She suddenly felt repulsed at the idea that she was actually considering killing him right now. She blamed it on the games. That it could make anyone do things they wouldn't normally do. But a tiny voice inside was telling her that maybe this was her true nature. But she dismissed the thought almost immediately. After all she was only in this wretched arena right now was because she couldn't let Prim be apart of this horror show.

Before she knew it, Rue was back. She took her pack off her shoulder and unzipped the main pocket to reveal leaves.

"What are those for?" Katniss asked curiously.

"When treating tracker jacker stings back home we use medicine made from this plant." Rue put a few in her mouth and started chewing. After a few moments she took it out. "Move the cloth so I can put it on his back."

Katniss did as asked, and Rue put the glob of plant on one of the wounds. She then took some more leaves to chew on. When they had been sufficiently chewed, she put another glob on the other wound. "Hopefully these should help stop the bleeding as well." Rue said.

"What about his leg?" Katniss was pointing to another two wounds on his thigh.

Rue gave some leaves to Katniss while taking some herself, and together they chewed on them until they could be applied to him.

"We should flip him over to make sure there're none on his front either," Katniss suggested.

Together Rue and Katniss heaved Percy onto his back as gently as possible. Rue gasped in shock. It looked possibly worse on his front then on his back. He had five long bloody gashes coming from across his right should to his left hip. He had the same black spider webs spreading across his chest as he did on his back. Katniss took more leaves and applied them to the wound that seemed to be the cause of it.

"How is he still alive?" Rue voiced the question that Katniss was thinking herself.

"I uh… I don't know," Katniss said softly. A lump was forming in her throat from guilt.

More time had passed than Katniss had thought. The sun was already going down, and the anthem would soon be playing. Katniss didn't remember hearing any cannons, so no faces would appear in the sky that night.

"We need to stay on the ground tonight with Percy, so I'll take first watch," Katniss offered.

Rue was so tired that she simply nodded and went to sleep without complaint.


	37. Chapter 37

**Sorry for the longer wait. Disclaimer: I do not own either book series**

Chapter 37

Katniss pov

Katniss was starting to regret taking first watch. She wrestled her eyes to stay open, as she failed to stifle a yawn. She looked over at Percy who was still lying motionless on his back. His body seemed clenched, and he was muttering to himself. Katniss attempted to understand, but it seemed like he was talking gibberish.

To keep herself awake, she started making traps that would hopefully be sprung before morning. She'd made several before settling back into her spot on the ground leaning against a tree with a bow in her hand. Every time Katniss glanced at Rue, she was instantly reminded of Prim. It was strange because they were actually fairly different. Prim was outgoing and gentle, but she lacked the mental toughness that it would take to win the games. With Rue, Katniss saw someone who has a quiet strength and resilience that came from watching over five younger siblings and putting up with cruel peace keepers her whole life.

Lost in thought, Katniss gave Rue an extra hour or so of sleep before waking her up to take watch.

"Do you have anything to defend yourself with in case someone attacks?" Katniss questioned when Rue was alert.

"Actually I do…" Rue said while rummaging through her backpack. She pulled out a slingshot and some rocks. Katniss had seen her use it during the training sessions, and she was surprisingly good with it. "Don't worry, I'll wake you up if we have company," Rue assured.

Katniss nodded before settling in for some much needed rest. Like most nights, her dreams were forgetful and morning appeared far too abruptly. Katniss woke up to the smell of cooked groosling. When Rue saw that Katniss had woken up, she greeted Katniss with a smile while tending to the cooking meat. Katniss glanced at Percy to find him in almost the exact same position he was in last night. Now that she could see him better, she noticed that he looked significantly paler than usual. His lips were bright red and the veins on his chest looked just a pronounced as they had before tending to him.

"We should switch the leaves on his body," Rue said following Katniss's gaze.

They reapplied the leaves, and Rue must have noticed Katniss's worried expression when checking the wounds because she said, "These things take time. They don't heal overnight. It could be days before he finds some semblance of a recovery."

"Days are slow in the arena," Katniss sighed. Rue didn't respond.

When the food was finished cooking, Katniss now realized that it was squirrel, Rue and she decided to try and force Percy to eat something as well. They managed to force him to eat some, but he wasn't responsive to their presence or the food at all.

"Why does he keep talking like that?" Katniss asked referring to the strange gibberish Percy was spouting.

"When people would get stung with tracker jacker venom back home at work, they would experience visions and hallucinations. Maybe this is like that?" Rue offered.

Katniss knew about the hallucinations. She'd seen plenty of tracker jacker venom laced drugs back in the seam in district 12. It was easy to find at the hob. She thought about trying it a few times, to see what it was like. To see if you really can escape the mundane grind everyday just to survive, but she'd recall the deliriously haunting expressions on the faces of some of the people that were brought to see her mom when they overdosed.

Katniss rummaged through her bag and brought her water out to give Percy a sip, so he could stay hydrated. She poured it down his throat. The second it touched his lips it was almost like magic. His skin started to color and warm, while his lips began returning to their normal pinkish hue. Katniss examined him and found that the black veins etched throughout his body were becoming greyer and less pronounced by the second. Katniss was so shocked that she almost dropped it.

His eyes fluttered open and he choked on the water. He instinctively shoved the water from his face causing it to spill out on the ground. Katniss tried to save it, but it had already lost most of the water. He turned his head and coughed up a mixture of blood and water. Rue had been quietly eating her breakfast, but she looked over in disbelief when she heard Percy start coughing. "That was quicker than I expected," Rue said amazed.

When he had finished coughing he looked at Katniss with a crooked grin on his haggard face, "Ouch" he laughed.

"How?" Katniss finally voiced in wonder.

"I told you this dog has a lot of fight," he said trying to keep the pain from his voice.

"I wouldn't be too sure; have you looked at yourself lately?" Katniss teased rolling her eyes,"

"I don't know how I look, but I definitely don't feel too good." It seemed as though the poison had not completely flushed from his system, and his face was returning back to the pale lifeless complexion it had been minutes ago.

Katniss got up and said, "I'm going to get some more water."

"No you stay here, I don't think Percy can defend himself, and I don't know if I'd be able to defend both of us. Besides, I'm pretty sure I'm faster than you anyways."

"Is that why I caught you?" Katniss challenged in a playful but slightly edgy tone.

"Only because I let you," Rue matched with equal fervor.

"Be quick about it," Katniss said with noticeable concern fixed in her voice.

Rue nodded before grabbing the container from Katniss and scaling a tree. Katniss watched her until she faded from view and the rustling of leaves could not longer be heard

"Made some new friends I see," Percy noted while staring in the direction that Rue had headed.

"So it seems. Is that bad?" Katniss asked.

"No, I'm just shocked. You're not exactly the warm and fuzzy type," Percy smirked.

"How can you be on the brink of death and still be this insufferable," Katniss wondered in exasperation.

"When you're this talented, you can't just turn it off," Percy said.

"How'd you kill it?" Katniss asked.

"I didn't. I couldn't," Percy said.

"Then what happened," Katniss said in confusion.

"I simply got him to kill himself instead." Percy grinned.

"Why would it do that?" Katniss asked.

"I'm insufferable, remember?" Percy joked.

Katniss actually laughed. She knew he wasn't telling the full story, but imagining Percy annoying the mutt enough to kill itself didn't seem all that impossible.

"You were talking in your sleep, but I couldn't understand what you were saying. It almost sounded like it wasn't English" Katniss said.

"Greek. Ancient Greek," Percy said immediately.

"Greek?" Katniss racked her brain trying to figure out where she heard the word before.

"Yeah, like the language spoken thousands of years ago." Percy said like it should be obvious.

"Where would you learn ancient Greek?" Katniss asked.

"They teach it at school right?" Percy sounded unsure of himself.

Katniss shook her head "They teach us of few things before the founding of Panem. Ancient Greek definitely isn't one of them. Didn't you drop out of school anyways?"

"I did? Oh right to work in the mines." Percy said. "You know, I've been having weird memory lapses since waking up the day of the reaping."

"Memory lapses?" Katniss stated, her mind reeling.

"Yeah. I don't remember doing the interview or training. I don't even remember how many days I've been in this arena." Percy said.

"Really?" Katniss asked edgily.

"If I didn't know any better I'd say you Weekend at Bernied me," Percy chuckled as if he made a joke.

"What's that mean?" Katniss asked in confusion.

"You never heard of Weekend at Bernie's? Like the movie?" Percy stated incredulously.

"We don't watch movies in district twelve. That's a luxury only the capitol can afford," she clipped. Katniss silently reached for her knife. Katniss had always known there was something off about her district partner. He didn't look like a kid from the seam. He didn't act like one either. Katniss didn't exactly know why, but she was certain he wasn't from district twelve. She was convinced now more than ever that he was a mutt sent from the Capitol. After seeing that lion humanoid a few days ago, was it really such a stretch that they could create a human-like mutt?

Her knife was firmly in her grasp now. She clutched it so hard she was surprised her hand didn't start bleeding. Katniss slowly crept closer to Percy.

"I'm back," Rue said swinging the container loosely in her grasp.

Katniss suddenly released the knife and quickly turned to Rue. "You have the water?" Another time, she thought while greeting Rue.

"Yeah, no problems on the way," Rue confirmed while holding the container. "It's not drinkable yet, so I supposed we need the iodine."

"No we should try not to waste it." Katniss said.

"Then how are we going to drink it?" Rue wondered.

"Boil it," Katniss supplied immediately.

Katniss began starting the fire again, while Rue was gathering extra leaves and sticks. "Not that you haven't been doing a marvelous job so far… but don't you think a fire would draw too much attention?" Percy asked.

Katniss stiffened when he spoke and answered without looking at him. "If someone finds us… I can protect us."

"How…" Percy probed.

"With her bow" Rue said hastily. Katniss cursed under her breath. She didn't want Percy to know she had it.

"How'd you get a bow?" Percy asked.

"I found it," Katniss answered.

"…just lying around I suppose?" Percy said suspiciously.

The fire had begun to crackle slowly. Katniss fed some leaves to spread it.

"No, I took it from the district one girl," Katniss responded.

Percy was silent for a second. Katniss had thought he finally shut up. Of course, she was wrong. "Did you kill her?" he asked quietly.

"You ask a lot of questions," Katniss said almost as heatedly as the fire she was tending.

"Did you kill her," he repeated ignoring her observation.

"Would it matter if I did?" Katniss fired a question of her own.

"Of course it would. You murdered a girl for weapon." Percy tried to be forceful, but his voice was to raw to raise.

"I didn't kill her. Cato did, while trying to kill me. It wasn't like she needed it anymore anyways." Katniss hissed, "But I would've killed her if Cato hadn't, and I wouldn't think twice."

"That's what they want you to do," Percy said.

"When will you grow up? This is a game where twenty-four kids will try and kill each other to be the last one remaining. Though I guess you forgot that bit too," Katniss said.

"Then why did come back for me?" Percy asked, "I'm just another name you want to cross of your list."

Katniss thought for a moment, "because I owed you for saving me from that mutt."

"And now I'm fine clearly, so the debt has been paid." Percy said coldly.

Katniss turned back to look at Percy only to fine him staring straight ahead into nothingness. She'd been a bit harsher then she wanted to be. Rue brought the remaining leaves over to Katniss. She had been so quiet that Katniss had forgotten she was even there. It made her think back to how she'd been watching her days, and Katniss had never noticed.

When the water had boiled, Katniss kicked the fire out, and let it cool. They didn't talk the rest of the day; not that Katniss could say she minded much. When night had begun, Katniss handed the now cool water to Percy to drink. He drank it quickly in one gulp before silently handing it back to Katniss.

"I'll take first watch," Rue volunteered.

"No, you've been up long enough," Katniss said firmly.

Rue was too tired to argue and simply nodded before lying down to sleep. She was out almost as soon as her head hit the ground.

It was too dark to tell if the water had helped any, but Percy had yet to move from his spot. After awhile Katniss finally spoke to Percy, "You really mean it don't you. You really won't kill anyone." Katniss didn't expect him to respond.

"Not a single one," Percy said with sincerity.

Soon enough Katniss woke Rue up for her shift. She realized she was adjusting to life in the arena because she was asleep in seconds. Soon enough, she was being shaken awake. "Katniss," a voice belonging to Rue spoke as Katniss found her bearings.

"What is it?" Katniss asked looking around expecting an attack. She found no one else.

"Percy left," Rue held up a silver canister, "and this just came. I think it's from your sponsors."


	38. Chapter 38

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series.**

Chapter 38

Percy pov

The water. He didn't know why, but he knew that if he went there he'd be safe. The drink had given him enough energy to get there, but he had no time to waste. He could feel the poison draining him once again. Luckily he wasn't so far away. His vision was beginning to blur, and it felt like the trees were were playing tricks on him. Moving around when he wasn't watching and freezing as soon as he looked in their general direction. _They think they're so clever_ Percy thought, _I'll catch you eventually._

If he were relying on his vision he'd have never made it to the creek, but no matter how strong the poison began to feel, the tug in his stomach was as reliable as ever. He was so close he could literally taste it. That isn't to say it tasting very good. He could sense the pollution as if it were physically hurting him. His foot got caught in a tree root and he tumbled to the ground.

Groaning in pain, he remembered that everyone in the entire nation just saw him fall on his face. Picking his head out of the mud, he crawled onwards. He was determined not to die on his hands and knees with a mouthful of mud.

"Well would you look at this. Hard to see what all the fuss is about." A voice smirked off from the side. Percy tried to see who it was, but his vision was so blurry that he just looked like a large black dot. Too large in fact to be any normal man.

"Can you just like… give me a second here," Percy said while waving his hand in an exasperated gesture and rolling his eyes. He knew he should've been scared, but in all honesty, his body was in so much pain that he doubted the man could make his situation any worse. He received a swift kick to the ribs. Percy fell on his side. He looked up to see his attacker looming over him.

"Can you not recognize me?"

"Should I?" Percy asked.

"That's a shame. It's much more fun to see the fear in their eyes when I kill them."

"Do we have to kill him so quickly? I mean, he's so pretty, I think I want to play with him for awhile first," a distinctly female voice said.

"I don't know how I feel about that." Percy contemplated. "On one hand, you called me pretty, and let's be honest it's nice to feel appreciated every so often. You also don't want to kill me right away which is good. But on the other hand, the way you said _play with him_ sounded very sinister, and I highly doubt I'd enjoy whatever you're thinking about right now. Also I just noticed there's more than one of you." Percy slowly kept creeping towards the water. He reached his hand back and felt the powerful current ride through his fingertips.

Everything quickly started returning to normal. His vision returned and his mind sharpened. He felt like he just drank eight cups of coffee. In front of him, he saw why the man looked bigger than any human could possibly be. There were four of them, the careers. Just a little longer and the poison would be completely expelled from his body.

Cato looked around at the group, "well? Anyone want to take the kill?"

"It's my turn," the district four girl spoke up while hefting a trident. Percy cursed himself for forgetting his sword. It was back with Katniss and the district eleven girl.

She approached Percy with the trident prepared to strike. Percy mustered all the acting skills he could, to appear as harmless as possible. This led the girl to make a mistake. Stepping too close to Percy, he took advantage and kicked her knee out. She stumbled forward and Percy yanked her and the trident in the water. Overpowering the girl, he took the trident and held it to her head. "If anyone attacks me she dies!" Percy said in an attempt to frighten the other tributes and stall for time. Unfortunately, the only one that seemed scared was the girl he was currently aiming the trident at.

"Why again would I care if you kill her? She's just another obstacle in my way. In fact, why don't we just kill both of you." Cato had a malevolent gleam in his eye.

"Cato please! Please don't this!" the girl was hysterical now.

Before anyone else could speak, Clove flicked her wrists. Percy could see the dagger reflecting sunlight off its blade and dodged it. He looked back and saw it impaled in a tree trunk. Percy returned his vision to the district four tribute to see her lying limp in the creek. A dagger was impaled in the side of her head. Blood seeped from her wound and was carried away in the ever-moving current.

Percy's vision went red and the creek exploded. When he could see clearly again he saw Cato, Clove, and the district one boy, Marvel, sprawled on their backs coughing up water. He quickly looked from the tributes to the creek and back again. He couldn't quite comprehend what had happened. _Had I done that?_ Percy thought.

 _Are you so shocked?_ That voice was back again. Percy saw them starting to regain their senses. They rose wearily to their feet.

"Leave!" Percy commanded. The water behind Percy shot up like a geyser for added affect. They immediately sprinted into the woods. They left so quickly that Cato had left his sword. Percy walked over and picked it up.

 _It feels good doesn't it? To have so much power. To be able to do whatever you want._ The voice spoke again. Percy didn't respond.


	39. Chapter 39

**Disclaimer: I do not own either book series**

Chapter 39

Katniss pov

Katniss twisted the cap off the silver container and discovered the contents to be a lotion of some kind. Katniss thought for a second before cautiously applying it to her burned leg. The relief was sudden, almost as magical as the healing she'd witnessed from Percy yesterday. She immediately started applying a thick coating to her burn. Katniss had seen her mom treat the miners with a cream similar to this back home. This appeared to be much more powerful and much more expensive than that one.

"Here, apply this to your burns," Katniss shoved the lotion into Rue's hands. Rue looked at it cautiously as if Katniss might be attempting to trick her, "if I was trying to kill you, it wouldn't be very smart to apply it to myself first now would it."

Rue scooped some lotion on her fingertips and slowly brought them to her burn while bracing herself for the pain to come. When she realized it had the opposite effect she began hastily applying a generous amount to her burns. "This is amazing!" Rue exclaimed as she let go a sigh of relief. "It must've cost sponsors a fortune."

"Yeah, yeah I'm sure it did," Katniss agreed.

"Why do you think they waited so long to deliver it?" Rue wondered.

"My sponsor held it back." Katniss replied.

"That guy who's always drunk?"

"He's the one," Katniss nodded.

"Why would he do that?"

"He wanted to make a smart bet. Only one tribute can make it out alive. You don't want to waste sponsor money on a tribute you don't think will survive. Better to load up on one tribute." Katniss explained.

"So that means he chose you then?' Rue asked, her voice tinged with hope.

"No privacy in the games," Katniss mumbled to herself.

"What?" Rue asked.

"It means that Percy didn't leave him much choice." Katniss knew the answer was cryptic, but she was still trying to figure out what to make of things herself, so that would be the best answer Rue was going to get. The only thing she did know was that she should have killed him last night. Whatever he was, he wasn't from district twelve.

Percy pov

Percy was getting seriously hungry. What he would do for a baconator right now… well he hoped nobody would have to find out. He wasn't much of a hunter, so his options were limited. If only he'd paid better attention when he was at that agriculture station a few days ago. Curiously Percy looked at the ground. There was a green plant about knee high sticking out of the dirt next to his foot. Checking to make sure nobody was watching, Percy slowly bent down and ripped it out of the ground. He gave it a sniff before hesitantly putting a leave in his mouth. Almost immediately he spit it back out before throwing the plant on the ground and stomping on it furiously.

"Stupid plant! Why can't you taste like burger!" Percy yelled waiting for an answer. It had the nerve to smirk at him and offered no reply.

"Please?" Percy asked again in a much gentler tone. Still no reply. "Fine! I didn't want to eat you anyways!" Percy resumed stomping the plant for a good five minutes.

Only when the plant had been thoroughly stomped into green paste did Percy decide to start moving again. He trudged on aimlessly through the forest. He was going to stop trying to help Katniss. He realized how stupid he'd been this whole time. If he actually thought his actions through instead of being so impulsive all the time then he wouldn't even be here right now. Why did he assume it was his job to save everyone? It seemed no one wanted his help anyways. Even when he did have the chance to save someone, he messed it up. Anger constricted his heart as he thought about that district four tribute.

He wondered how much money had passed hands when that knife hit her skull. He had to guess it was much more money than she could have ever spent if she had actually won the hunger games she so willingly volunteered for. And now it was for naught anyhow.

As the sun went down, Percy heard a howl pierce through the night sky. Suddenly the anthem started to blare, overpowering the baying wolf. In the sky he saw the district four tribute's face. Normally, this is when Percy would have made camp for the night, but he decided to keep moving. He had too much on his brain to sleep right now.

He continued to wander aimlessly across the forest. He thought back to what had occurred earlier this morning after the district four tribute had died. He still wasn't sure what had happened. He just became overwhelmed with rage and suddenly he felt a tug in his gut. Almost like he just ran for a long distance without water and was beginning to cramp up. The creek exploded and everybody but himself was on their backs sputtering up water. Had he caused that? It should've sounded crazy to him, but it somehow didn't. The poison too. When he reached the water he felt completely healed. Like it had never happened in the first place.

Percy was jarred from his thoughts by a sudden storm cloud gathering over the arena. Abruptly, as if turning a shower handle, the cloud released a heavy rainfall. Percy looked up at the cloud in shock, for he didn't even know it could rain in the arena. He simply shrugged and kept moving, not even realizing that he was completely dry.

Lightning lit up the forest as thunder boomed in Percy's ears. When the next wave of thunder had passed, Percy heard a blood-curdling scream not far from him. It sounded male. All was quite for a moment before the sound of a cannon went off followed by another flash of lightning. Percy took off in that direction. Before long, he found himself back at the cornucopia. Percy squinted through the rain, and saw what looked like a small skirmish between the careers and the three wolves Percy had run into a few nights ago. After what had happened this morning no one would have blamed him for looking the other way. Unfortunately he couldn't bring himself to do that. He also knew there would be food in that cornucopia. Muttering a curse under his breath, Percy sprinted towards the fight without a second thought. As he got closer, he realized that one of the tributes, the male from district one, had already fallen. One of the wolves was tearing into the tribute's throat, as he lay motionless on the ground. That must've been the cannon he heard earlier. Cato and Clove were fending the other two wolves off from atop the cornucopia. The wolves were having trouble climbing, but it was only a matter of time.

Percy wasn't exactly taking the subtle approach, but between the noise of the storm and the fighting, they even notice Percy approaching. Percy sprinted towards the wolf that was feasting on the tribute and attempted to lop its head off. The sword went through its neck as smooth as butter. Unfortunately, the head reattached itself as fast as Percy could slice it.

"Right, you guys don't die," Percy recalled grimly. The wolf focused its bright red eyes on Percy. It had a disturbing intelligence hidden within them.

Percy looked at the tribute and noticed a spear next to his body. An idea suddenly came to him. Percy slowly backed away from the wolf in fear. The wolf snarled and licked its lips. It seemed to enjoy the fear in Percy's eyes. Suddenly the wolf sprinted after Percy, and Percy sprinted at the wolf. The wolf leapt at Percy's neck, and Percy baseball slid underneath it, the wet grass helping him along. He reached the spear and spun back around. He could hardly process the large mass off teeth and fur in his face before thrusting the spear through its belly. Using all the strength he could muster, Percy thrust the spear into the ground with the wolf still attached. Shish kebabed to the spear, the wolf could do little more than offer an annoyed growl.

Having little time to admire his handiwork, Percy turned his attention to the two other wolves. Clove tried to kick one of the wolves and lost her footing on the slippery metal. She let out a shriek and tumbled past the wolves to the grass below. They immediately disregarded Cato, and began to rip Clove to shreds. Percy poured on the speed, but he didn't know how he'd stop two wolves at once. As Percy neared the tribute, Cato jumped down from the cornucopia and landed on top of one of the wolves. Percy sent his knee crashing into the other wolf's body. The wolf hit the side of the cornucopia with a thud, but appeared relatively unfazed. It snarled at Percy before turning back into a man.

"You're so predictable. You just couldn't help saving these idiots," the werewolf mocked.

"You know how to kill these things?" Cato asked while examining Clove. The wolf he jumped on had disregarded Cato and joined his comrade.

"I don't think we can…" Percy paused to catch his breath before adding, "when I tell you to, take Clove and head for the grain fields."

Percy instinctively held his hands up in the air. Suddenly all of the rain stopped, frozen in mid air. The werewolves' looked around in fear.

"H-how are you… how are you doing this?" Cato asked in disbelief.

"Go now," Percy said. Cato still didn't move. "Now!" Percy commanded more forcefully.

Cato quickly got the message and began heading for the grain field with Clove being carried on his shoulders.

"You can keep them," the lycanthrope said dismissively, "we only attacked them to draw you out."

"That was a mistake," Percy said.

He sniffed the air, "there's something different about you this time. The curse, I can't smell it."

"You know you can't kill us, but we can definitely kill you," he taunted before morphing back into a wolf.

Suddenly the rainwater formed a cube around both wolves. Percy clenched his fist and the water froze into a giant ice cube.

"Yeah, but I don't need to kill you," Percy stated smugly.

With the wolves taken care of, Percy made his way to the mouth of the cornucopia.

"Food," Percy stated simply before picking up a bag of apples laid next to him. He took one out and took a large bite out of it.


	40. Chapter 40

**Disclaimer: I own neither series**

 **Sorry for the wait, for those that care.**

Chapter 40

Percy pov

Percy began heading towards the grain fields toting a backpack full of supplies he'd found at the cornucopia. The straps felt itchy against his bare skin. He followed the path of trampled grain and after a surprisingly long trip, it lead him to a grim sight. Cato was kneeling over Clove's damaged body. Percy could see concern etched in Cato's face, and it actually shocked him. Percy figured he didn't care about anything other than winning the games. Cato was so focused on Clove that he didn't even noticed Percy until he was perched over her body as well.

"Is she conscious?" Percy asked while hovering behind Cato.

Cato gave a surprised yelp and attempted to swing his sword wildly behind him without looking first. Percy kicked his hand away mid-swing and the sword skittered through the grain out of Cato's reach.

"Hey easy guy! I just saved your life!" Percy screeched as Cato recognized who it was and calmed back down somewhat.

"We gotta help her," Percy said urgently when he saw her mangled body. Her clothes were in tatters, and blood was seeping out of various wounds. Her right arm was bent at a sickly unnatural angle. The left side of her face was a bloody mess, and her eye was swollen shut. The worst was coming from her neck. Percy could see she was slowly choking on her own blood. Clove blinked her right eye, and a tear slid down the side of her cheek.

"There's only one thing we can do," Cato said with a miserable sigh. He reached into his pocket and brought out a knife.

Clove attempted to say something, but only a soft gurgle came out. Cato took the knife and firmly stabbed Clove through the heart. Almost instantly she became motionless as blood continued to seep from the lifeless body. The canon shot off confirming this to be true.

For a long while, Percy silently stood behind Cato not wanting to interrupt his grieving. Cato, for his part, sat on his butt in the muddy dirt with his legs folded towards his chest and his arms hanging from his knees. He had a blank expression on his face, and Percy couldn't tell whether he was crying or not from the rain hitting his face.

After a while, Percy coughed awkwardly and said, "we should probably go. Her body doesn't belong here anymore."

"Yeah," Cato said hoarsely, "one less person in the way."

With that Cato grabbed his sword, and Percy waited for Cato to lead the way, as Percy didn't trust him enough to turn his back to him. When they were a safe distance away, Percy looked back to see Clove's body being brought out of the arena.

"We should head back to the cornucopia," Cato said as he watched Clove's body ascend as well. The rain had stopped but it was still too dark to see clearly.

"I don't think we should risk moving in the night." Percy suggested, "We should wait until morning."

"What about the sunglasses?" Cato turned to face Percy.

"Sunglasses?" Percy asked with confusion.

"Yeah, they let you see in the dark, do you have them in that backpack of yours?" Cato explained while gesturing to the backpack Percy was carrying.

"No, I uh… didn't pack them," Percy sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "Didn't know they did that." Percy recalled seeing them next to a box of pillows.

"Well what did you pack?" Cato spit out rolling his eyes.

"Hey, buddy, you wanna check that tone?" Percy glared at Cato through squinted eyes. _The nerve of this guy to speak to me like this after I just saved his life_ Percy thought.

"No see I really _don't_ ," Cato responded gripping his sword so tightly his knuckles turned white.

It was Percy's turn to roll his eyes, "Ya know, Clove could've used some of this tough guy bravado when you left her for the wolves while you were cowering on top of that cornucopia." Percy knew he struck a nerve on that one.

Cato swung his sword wildly at Percy's face. Percy stepped back and watched the metal swing inches in front of his face.

At this Percy chuckled, "Do you even know how to use that thing?" he taunted.

"I've been training with a sword since before I could read," Cato growled before attempted to thrust his sword through Percy's stomach.

"That'd be a bit more impressive if you actually could read," Percy replied while stepping to the side.

On Cato's next hack, an attempted slice through Percy's neck, Percy grabbed his wrist and twisted it at an awkward angle. Cato immediately dropped the sword, and Percy pulled Cato into a chokehold.

"Your…fault," Cato sputtered out, "Clove… wolves after… you."

"You need to calm down," Percy said in a dangerously quiet voice. He was angry, with Cato, but Percy realized it was because there was truth behind his words. The wolves were after Percy. They were just the bait, so it was his fault that another tribute died, again. Percy didn't let up until Cato fell limp in his arms. Percy dropped him on the muddy ground. "Guess I have first watch then."

Katniss Pov

Other than a cannon they heard later in the morning, the day had been eerily peaceful, as Rue and Katniss hunted for food. Neither talked much, except for the occasional tip Katniss would give Rue on hunting and trapping techniques. Katniss briefly wondered if it was Percy. Without any more medical attention, Katniss wouldn't be surprised if the poison had finally killed him. She assumed she was supposed to be happy about that news. Despite their argument and Katniss's growing suspicion that Percy was a mutt; she didn't want to witness him die. Even better would be the fact that she wouldn't have to ask the question as to whether she could really kill him herself to win. She feared neither of them would like the answer.

They decided to take more food than they needed in case they were forced to split up because Rue was not very good at hinting her own food. Towards the end of the day as the sun was going down, the anthem blared throughout the forest. Katniss and Rue looked to the sky curiously, as they awaited the identification of the death from earlier this morning. When she finally saw who it was, Katniss let out an annoyed sigh. Instead of seeing Percy's face, she saw the female from district four. It seemed that her district partner was still out there somehow.

"Hoping to see someone else up there?" Rue asked curiously when she heard Katniss's sigh.

"Yeah actually. I was hoping it'd be Percy," Katniss replied truthfully.

"Why? Because he left us?" Rue pressed.

"No because in order for me to survive these games, he can't," Katniss reasoned before quickly realizing that included Rue as well. "I didn't mean it like that!" Katniss backtracked looking at Rue's crestfallen expression, "I just… don't want to be the one who has to do it."

Rue was silent for a long time. Katniss had assumed she was sleeping already, but after a while Rue asked, "Do you love him?"

The question caught Katniss by surprise, "Love him? I hardly know him."

"It's just… when he went to kill that mutt, so you could escape, I saw him kiss you. I just thought…" Rue didn't finish the sentence, and Katniss was glad she didn't.

Katniss didn't respond for a while because she didn't know how too. Luckily sleep had finally overtaken Rue, so she didn't have too.


	41. Chapter 41

**I know this has taken a while again, but it should clear up now that I have the direction I want to take this story. The only question I have for you guys is whether I should keep the ending to this story open for a sequel (or multiple) or whether I should end in with finality. If you have an opinion you'd like to share on that then leave it in the reviews please.**

 **It has also become apparent that it may seem as though I don't read the reviews or don't appreciate them, but I really do, so for now on I'm going to be giving a shoutout to reviewers starting with last chapter moving forward**

 **Shoutout to :**

 **whycan'tIfindanamethatfits**

 **b31nobody**

 **CRUDEN**

 **DreamCatcher06**

 **Seriously**

 **Conor**

 **ExtremePuppyLove**

 **ArtemisAthena8**

 **Some guests that decided to review as well**

 **Thanks for the reviews and for all of the others that have reviewed my previous chapters.**

 **Disclaimer: I own neither series**

Chapter 41

Katniss pov

Katniss's eyes fluttered open, as she let out an exhausted moan. Her poor back whined in protest as she tried to sit up in her tree. She was beginning to realize that having to sleep in trees every night was easily the most underestimated hardship of the hunger games. She expected Rue to make a crack about her crankiness but was surprised to find her eerily silent.

Katniss bolted upright and looked around wildly for Rue. When Katniss noticed she wasn't in sight, Katniss let out a panicked screech, "Rue! Rue where are you!"

Katniss began to hurriedly pack her supplies while her heart thumped out of her chest. She could hear herself hyperventilating as she tried to stuff her provisions into her bag as fast as her scattered mind could handle.

"Rue!" Katniss let out another strangled yelp, as she jumped down from her tree, preparing to search for her district eleven ally.

Katniss immediately assumed the worst. Dead. Alone because Katniss couldn't protect her. A tiny part of her brain tried to rationalize that this was a good thing. If Katniss were to make it out of the games alive then Rue couldn't, but that was being thrusts to the back of her mind by other more fearful thoughts. How could she have slept so peacefully while Rue had disappeared during the night? _The Storm_ Katniss thought the heavy rain and thunder last night would have caused the perfect cover for attacking tributes at night without making too much noise. Katniss was holding on to the slimmest of hope because she couldn't figure out why another tribute would just leave Katniss untouched during the perfect opportunity to take two tributes out.

Scanning the area Katniss suddenly heard a rustling of leaves, and she looked above with an arrow notched in her bow to identify the source of the noise. A figure dropped to the ground and Katniss felt relief flush through her body as Rue looked from Katniss to the bow in her hand with confusion etched across her features.

Katniss dropped the bow and lunged forward. She hugged Rue fiercely, which caused Rue to stiffen up but eventually relax into the hug as well.

"Not that I don't like hugs, but what's wrong?" Rue asked in a voiced that was muffled against Katniss's shoulder.

Katniss released Rue and said, "I thought… I thought that you were…" she trailed off not wanting to finish what they both knew the end of the sentence to be.

"I just went to get some berries," Rue said in a hushed voice as if her teacher had just given her detention.

"Don't you ever do that again!" Katniss shrieked in anger while angrily swatting Rue's arm.

"Ok! Ok! Sorry!" Rue said in fear of more swatting. "I'll… leave a note next time?" Rue added hesitantly.

Katniss let out a tension-relieving chuckle that quickly spiraled into belly-rumbling laughter. Rue soon joined in on the contagious laugh. When they finally stopped Katniss hugged Rue again, and they decided to eat the berries for breakfast and begin the routine they had subconsciously developed over the past few days.

As the day went on Katniss asked, "Did you happen to hear anymore cannons yesterday?"

"Not counting the one for the district four girl you mean?" Rue asked.

"Yeah, last night after the anthem," Katniss asked as she released an arrow aimed at a groosling twenty yards away.

"No, I couldn't hear anything through the storm last night," Rue said, "did you?"

"I thought I heard at least one last night, but I couldn't really tell with the storm either," Katniss answered.

"Well I guess we'll find out later tonight," Rue said shrugging her shoulders.

Percy pov

Cato had barely moved a muscle in hours. Percy knew he was pretending to be asleep, and he had been trying to give the guy some space. They'd have to move sooner or later, and Percy would prefer sooner. They never said it out loud, but Percy had supposed they were now in an alliance. At the very least they had decided on a truce; Percy wouldn't kill Cato, and Cato couldn't kill Percy.

"Come on," Percy started, "we have to get back to the cornucopia. It's not safe in this wheat field. I can hardly see anything."

After a moment Cato rolled over to stare at Percy. His face was caked in mud making his expression difficult to read. He stared at Percy for a few moments longer. Percy was beginning to get fidgety from boredom.

"How did you do that thing with the rain last night?" Cato finally asked.

Percy knew he'd ask this question at some point, but he had been dreading answering it. Percy honestly had no idea how he did it. He just knew he could like a gut reaction.

"You made the creek explode earlier too," Cato continued when Percy stayed silent.

"Honestly? I couldn't tell ya." Percy stated hopelessly, "I've been trying to answer that question myself."

"You're different," Cato stated the obvious as if stating the sky was blue.

 _He's right_ the sleepy voice in Percy's head agreed. _You are different. You're a pawn. To be used and sacrificed by others to further their own agendas. I can show you who you really are._

"Why, so I can be your pawn too?" Percy accidently asked out loud.

"What?" Cato asked in confusion.

Percy didn't answer. He was waiting for a response. _You can be my champion_ the voice replied.

"Oh nothing just…" Percy tilted and smacked the side of his head with his palm as if trying to get water out of his ear. "The voices in my head." Percy finished in a cheerful tone. Cato was staring at him like he wasn't even human. Percy supposed he might be right.

Percy thought he heard a noise like footsteps from a little ways to the right of them. His internal radar was tingling crazy telling him there was something dangerous nearby.

"Come on we don't want to be here too long after dark," Percy extended his arm in an act of good faith. Cato looked at Percy warily for a second before probably coming to the conclusion that he didn't have any better options and allowed Percy to help him up.

Katniss pov

The anthem had begun booming to signal that another day in the arena had come to an end. Rue and Katniss had just started finishing their sleeping bags for the night when they decided to look up and watch the screen. They were surprised to find that Katniss had been at least partially right about the cannon last night. There had actually been two deaths yesterday and astonishingly enough they were both careers. The district one boy and the district two girl had both been eliminated. Katniss started racking her brain to figure out which of the careers were left. Katniss saw the district one girl die, the district four girl had been eliminated yesterday, and both the district one boy and district two girl had been eliminated at some point last night. That means that-

"The only career left is Cato," Rue said coming to the same conclusion as Katniss.

Katniss felt an emotion coursing through her body. It made her toes tingle, her stomach flutter, and her mind zoom a mile a minute. Though she couldn't quite pinpoint what it was she was feeling it was decidedly positive. Cato was vulnerable and alone. For the first time since she entered the arena Katniss was actually hopeful that she could win the games. There was still Thresh, and even unaided Katniss knew Cato was dangerous, and of course Percy was still alive somehow, though Katniss had no clue what condition he could possibly be in, but Katniss actually had a chance.

"If Cato is alone we should come up with a plan to take him out," Katniss reasoned to Rue.

Katniss glanced over to see that Rue did not share the same enthusiasm as Katniss. She wouldn't look Katniss in the eye and carried a troubled expression on her face.

"Is something bothering you?" Katniss asked quizzically.

Rue thought for a moment as if deciding whether she should confide in Katniss before answering softly, "I didn't think I'd make it this far."

Katniss was confused as to why this would upset Rue, so she gestured for Rue to elaborate.

"It's just… I don't know how to do this," Rue began, "how to kill or hunt. I don't think I could've survived this long without you. What if you die tomorrow and it's just me."

Katniss was shocked, as it wasn't something she had given much thought to. Of course she had thought about what her death would mean if she didn't make it out of the games, but those thoughts were concerning Prim, Gale, and their families. She hadn't think about how it might affect Rue. Katniss couldn't imagine being a twelve year old in this arena with no fighting experience to speak of. Katniss thought back to Prim as a lump began to form in her throat.

"You're the most talented and fiercest girl I've ever known." Katniss told her. "Not many twelve year olds can score a seven. I wouldn't count you out no matter who was in this arena." After a moment Katniss added softly, "And if I don't make it out of this arena, then I hope you win."


End file.
